Health protection is the branch of public health concerned with policies and practice to improve the prevention and control of infectious diseases and other environmental threats to the health of the population. The health protection function is a relatively new branch of public health created in response to the Chief Medical Officer’s (CMO) strategy Getting Ahead of the Curve.
It is delivered by the whole range of the public health workforce identified in the CMO’s Project to Strengthen the Public Health Function, including both consultant and practitioner level staff in the specialist health protection workforce, in the general public health workforce and in the wider heath community.
The Health Protection Agency's (HPA) role is to provide an integrated approach to protecting UK public health through the provision of support and advice to the NHS, local authorities, emergency services, other arms length bodies, the Department of Health and the devolved administrations.
CIEH has been working closely with the HPA in the development of competences for health protection professionals.
Health Protection Regulations 2010