Abstract
Make it new: reformism and British public health
Highlights
After months of headlines, the political temptation to remodel PHE is unsurprising
Autonomy allowed the Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS) to act as an effective advocate for public health interests in Westminster and the National Health Service (NHS)
The remainder of the PHLS network was transferred to the NHS, despite warnings that individual trusts would have little incentive to maintain adequate funding once ring-fenced transition budgets ended in 2005
Summary
Considering recent decades and the very different ways in which public health works in other countries should make us cautious. Between 1939 and 2003, the internationally renowned ancestor of PHE, the Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS), presided over an integrated network, which at its height consisted of 69 local, regional, and national laboratories. The PHLS network enabled it to work effectively with local and National Health Service (NHS) authorities, respond flexibly to outbreaks, and bundle and analyse information at its Colindale headquarters.
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