Health, Care or Voluntary Sector Role: Environmental Public Health Scientist
Supporting Organisation: UK Health Security Agency
I am an Environmental Public Health Scientist working on chemical and environmental hazards. I have worked in various roles across public health all of which have had a focus on reducing inequalities in health.
My motivation for joining the programme is to gain and develop skills to inform the way my department works on lead cases and in the long run, raise awareness of the risks of lead poisoning and prevent further cases.
About Danielle's fellowship project
Title: Why early detection of lead poisoning in children in at risk groups in the East of England would improve health outcomes
Lead is a non-essential metal, with blood lead levels as low as 0.01μg/dL having been seen to cause adverse health outcomes. Children are more susceptible to adverse health outcomes from lead exposure due to lead being more readily absorbed and accumulated in growing bones and organs. Clinical guidance on testing for lead differs regionally, and identification relies on either parents or clinicians knowing when to test and when to suspect lead poisoning. Due to being asymptomatic at low levels of exposure and non-specific nature of symptoms of acute toxicity, lead toxicity is often missed or mis-diagnosed. The aim of this work is to use case data held by my department to identify demographic risk factors for lead poisoning in children along with likely sources. We believe, from the data we currently hold, that lead toxicity in children is underreported in the East of England. I intend to use publicly available information along with the identified at risk groups/ sources of lead to see if there is a relationship that might suggest we are missing cases.
Supervisor: Dr Adam Wagner, University of East Anglia
Contact Danielle: Danielle.Leek2@ukhsa.gov.uk