Director of Public Health’s 2020 Annual Report tackles inequities and outlines a positive vision for recovery from COVID-19 in Cardiff and the Vale

Cardiff and Vale University Health Board’s Executive Director of Public Health has published her 2020 Annual Report for Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan, ‘Let’s leave no-one behind in Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan’, which highlights the varied impact the pandemic has had on our population and sets out a vision for working through recovery in partnership.

Last year saw us experience the most significant pandemic in over 100 years, which led to lockdowns and disruption across the globe. Whilst some people found the lockdowns a positive opportunity to become more active, spend quality time with close family and connect electronically with friends, many have experienced bereavement, social isolation, financial hardship, food poverty and exposure to other risks. In the 2020 Annual Report, Cardiff and the Vale’s Executive Director of Public Health, Fiona Kinghorn, highlights the impact of the pandemic on our communities, with a focus on tackling inequities and prioritising prevention through recovery from COVID-19.

Many inequities affecting the population in Cardiff and Vale were evident prior to the pandemic. However the effects of COVID-19 provided very evident evidence of the real world impact of inequity, translating into an unequal distribution in the rates of infection, hospitalisation and deaths, with greater risk in older people, ethnic minority groups and those experiencing disadvantage. This annual report describes some of the evidence that has been gathered so far on the toll the pandemic has taken on people living in Cardiff and Vale, but also sets a positive and ambitious vision for recovery by working together to build a stronger and more equitable future.

“Last year was like no other. We saw the greatest mobilisation of our public and many of our services seen in peacetime. The collective action witnessed in so many places, and at so many levels, is one of the positives that we must draw from our experience of the pandemic. Local partners innovated and adapted rapidly to ensure critical services remained functional, and staff were amazingly flexible and willing to be redeployed into new roles to ensure this happened at pace. In emerging from this challenging time, it is this spirit of togetherness that we need to preserve and carry forward,” Fiona Kinghorn, Executive Director of Public Health, Cardiff and Vale University Health Board stated.

Read an interactive summary of ‘Let’s leave no one behind in Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan – Tackling inequities and prioritising prevention through recovering from COVID-19’ on Sway here.