Reflections on next time: The changing role of public health in UK disaster
13:00 - 14:00, Wednesday 24th January 2024
Chair: William Roberts, CEO, RSPH
Speaker: Professor Lucy Easthope LLB MSc PhD FHEA FRAI FEPS, Professor in Practice of Risk and Hazard, University of Durham, and co-founder of the After Disaster Network based in their Institute of Hazard, Risk and Resilience
Lucy Easthope is a leading authority on recovering from disaster. For over two decades she has challenged others to think differently about what comes next, after tragic events. She is a passionate and thought-provoking voice in planning for pandemics, conflict and disaster, and has been a tactical advisor to UK disaster responders since 2001. Her research and practice portfolio includes mass fatalities planning, legal aspects of emergencies, identifying lessons post incident, the effectiveness of public inquiries, interoperability, and community resilience in practice. She is a member of the Cabinet Office National Risk Assessment Behavioural Science Expert Group.
Lucy has developed contingency plans, training programmes and exercises with a number of organisations including government bodies, charities, airports and airlines, universities and emergency services. She has participated in the response to many disasters, and is currently advising on the consequences of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. She has a special interest in the care and return of personal effects after disaster, writing and advising internationally on this subject. Her further research interests include the effectiveness of legislation in the field of emergency management, children and young people in disaster and the human aspects of risk management, insurance and business continuity processes.
Based in the UK, she is known globally for her work and holds an honorary position at the Joint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University, New Zealand. She is a Professor in Practice of Risk and Hazard at the University of Durham and a co-founder of the After Disaster Network based in their Institute of Hazard, Risk and Resilience. She is a Professor in Mass Fatalities and Pandemics at the Centre for Death and Society, University of Bath. She is an author of a number of publications including The Recovery Myth.
Her new book When The Dust Settles Stories of Love, Loss and Hope from an Expert in Disaster was released in March 2022 and is a Sunday Times Bestseller.
In this webinar Lucy will discuss her experiences of working alongside public health in extremis and her reflections on what comes next.