UCL academic appointed to the UK Health Security Agency’s advisory board

UKHSA is responsible for protecting the public from the impact of infectious diseases, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents and other health threats. It provides intellectual, scientific and operational leadership at a national and local level, as well as on the global stage to make the nation’s heath secure.

Professor Hart will become one of five new Non-Executive Members appointed to the advisory board, alongside three Associate Non-Executive members.

Non-Executive Members will provide impartial oversight and advice to the UKHSA’s chair, Ian Peters and Chief Executive Officer Dame Jenny Harries, helping the organisation to deliver its strategic objectives.

Professor Hart, who was previously Dean of the Faculty of Population Health Sciences until 2021, and is currently Co-Director of UCL Health of the Public, said: “This is a great honour. I’m delighted to have been asked to serve the public in this way.

“I will do everything I can to support the UK’s health security, with an emphasis on the value of a global perspective and engagement with affected communities.”

Professor Hart, Professor of Sexual Health & HIV Research at UCL, was instrumental in setting up and evaluating the first dedicated needle-exchange in the UK – the work of which has been cited globally and contributed to a reduction in parenteral transmission of HIV throughout the world.

His research on men who have sex with men is also widely cited and has informed HIV prevention strategies both in the UK and internationally.

UKHSA chair, Ian Peters said: “We’re delighted to confirm the appointment of our non-executive members and associates to the new UKHSA Advisory Board and its committees.

“These new non-executive members are a diverse group who have been selected to bring a wide range of expertise, perspectives and thinking styles. I am really pleased that we have attracted such a high calibre group and I am sure they will add tremendous value both collectively and individually.

“I look forward to working with them as we establish UKHSA in the next phase of its development.”

UKHSA Chief Executive, Dame Jenny Harries said: “I am absolutely delighted to welcome our new colleagues to the UKHSA. As we learn to live with Covid and navigate complex and newly emerging health threats, I am hugely grateful for the time and experience that our new board members will provide to help us keep the nation’s health secure.

“I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead.”

Links

• Professor Graham Hart’s academic profile
• UCL Institute for Global Health
• UCL Population Health Sciences
• UCL Health of the Public
• UK Health Security Agency

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• Professor Graham Hart

Media contact 

Poppy Danby 

E: p.danby [at] ucl.ac.uk