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Health Workers unite to ask the Prime Minister for urgent action on air pollution

15.06.23

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A letter signed by over 200 healthcare providers across the UK demanding action on dirty air has been sent to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
It has been written in support of a letter sent to the PM from leading scientists last week warning policy-makers not to undermine the science
The signatories cover a wide range of professions, including doctors, nurses, general practitioners, mental health professionals and more

The letter says: “We deal with children struggling to breathe, parents grieving lost babies, adults suffering from cancer, heart attacks, stroke and dementia. All made more common by the toxic air we breathe.”

It adds: “Sadly there are very few effective actions that our patients can take to reduce their personal exposure. Much more powerful are the interventions that only coordinated action from national, regional and local governments can achieve.”

The letter was conceived and written by Ride for Their Lives, a grassroots collaboration of UK and international healthcare providers who cycle to galvanise action on the air quality crisis. The rides bring together and amplify the voice of the health staff who deal daily with the devastating effects of air pollution.

The letter:

Dear Prime Minister

We agree with Prof. Frank Kelly and his colleagues that the research undertaken by UK scientists on the issue of toxic air is world-leading. The scientists have given us disturbing evidence, but we as health care providers are left on the front line with the heartbreaking impacts. We deal with children struggling to breathe, parents grieving lost babies, adults suffering from cancer, heart attacks, stroke and dementia. All made more common by the toxic air we breathe.

We were directed by your Chief Medical Officer, Chris Whitty, to ensure that "the training of healthcare staff should include the health effects of air pollution and how to minimise these, including communication with patients". We see our role as translating the scientific evidence honestly into meaningful actions our patients can take to protect themselves and their families.

Sadly there are very few effective actions that our patients can take to reduce their personal exposure. Much more powerful are the interventions that only coordinated action from national, regional and local governments can achieve. These include providing environments where our patients can travel safely on foot and by bike, Ultra Low Emission and Clean Air Zones as in London, Newcastle and other cities, local traffic control solutions such as school streets, and effective regulation of wood burning in urban areas. The science shows that this clears the air, reduces hospitalization and make our frontline work easier. It is deeply worrying that some politicians have chosen to deny the science and promote delay and disinformation. We call on you to set an example to your peers.

Making it safe for young children to travel to school on foot or bike brings enormous mental and physical health benefits as does cycling to work along safe and unpolluted routes while experiencing the smell, sight and sounds of nature.

We urge you and your colleagues to promote a better, cleaner future for the UK. We ask you to work with us and our scientific colleagues in making the case for urgent action on air pollution. As your Chief Medical Officer said: "Air pollution is an environmental risk to health that can, and should, be solved systematically." Please listen.

Yours sincerely,

Dr Mark Hayden	Paediatrician	London
Dr Heather Lambert	Paediatrician	Newcastle upon Tyne
Miss Emma Hounsell	Nurse	London
Dr Chinthika Piyasena	Paediatrician	London
Dr Cvetkovic	Paediatric Intensivist	London
Dr Maria Bredow	Paediatrician	Bristol
Johanna Andersson	Senior Configuration Designer (EPR)	London
Ms Rachel Naunton	Physiotherapist	London
Prof Sir Stephen Holgate	MRC Clinical Professor University of Southampton and Special Advisor to the RCP on Air Quality	Southampton
Dr Jonathan Grigg	Professor or Respiratory Medicine, Queen Mary University of London	London
Mr Richie Bryan	Physiotherapist	London
Jacqueline Gordon	Children’s Occupational Therapist	London
Dr Hammad Khan	Neonatologist	Surbiton
Terry	Physician	Oxford
Jessie Frost	Paediatric Physiotherapist	Sevenoaks
Ms Nic Caudle	Occupational Therapist	Greater Manchester
Miss Madeleine Boyle	Occupational Therapist	London
Dr Laura Baines	Nephrologist	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Jyothi Srinivas	Paediatrician	Milton Keynes
Aisling Condon	Physiotherapist	Cornwall
Mrs Charlotte Francis	Physiotherapist	Bristol
Dr Simon Hunter	GP	Southampton
Dr Premala Nadarajah	Anaesthetist	London
Mr Joel Reynolds	Occupational Therapist	London
Dr Martin Carby	Respiratory Physician	Little Chalfont
Dr Dawn Linford	GP	Newcastle upon Tyne
Charlie Ptaszynski	Horticulturalist	London
Dr Girish Murthy	Anaesthetist	Watford
Dr. Marty Climenhaga	Occupational Therapist	Southampton
Michele Presacane	Physiotherapist	Bow Street, Wales
Mrs Karen Herndon	Physiotherapist	Poole
Dr Linda Barry	GP	St Agnes
Dr Simon Carroll	GP	Dereham Norfolk
Dr Sally Walker	GP	North Shields
Dr Phil Stamp	A&E Consultant	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Sally Harrison	Anaesthetist	London
Lucy Abbey	Nurse	London
Dr Aimee Priestman	GP	Stockport
Dr Laura-Jane Smith	Respiratory Physician	London
Dr Ellie Bond	Honorary Specialist in Palliative Care for Children	Newcastle
Ms Jane Barclay	Psychotherapeutic Counsellor	Luzech, France (UK citizen)
Dr Neeta Patel	Oral Surgeon	London
Mrs Jean Davies	Midfwife	Newcastle upon Tyne
Sarah	Physiotherapist	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Chris Worth	Paediatrician	Manchester
Nicola Wilson	Paediatric Nurse	London
Dr Annette Hames	Clinical Psychologist	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Sue Vernon	Paediatric Nurse Consultant	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Gill Turner	Paediatrician	Hexham
Dr Mark Harber	Associate Professor and Physician	London
Dr Rhianna Netherton	Paediatrician	Stockport
Dr Sara Lightowlers	Clinical Research Fellow	Cambridge
Ms Catherine Kidd	Dietitian	London
Dr Stephanie Potts	Paediatrician	Haydock
Dr Linda Simpson	GP	Truro
Anne White	Nurse	London
Dr Sarah Walpole	Infectious diseases specialist registrar	Newcastle
Prof Hugh Montgomery	Intensivist	London
Dr Diane Ackerley	GP	Hexham
Kay Laurenson	Paramedic	Crediton
Dr Stuart Drysdale	GP	Cheltenham
Dr Lilase Hakoun	Paediatrician	Manchester
Mr Vincent Lee	CAD Manager	Barnet
Mr Zeshan Rawn	Senior Information Manager	London
Mrs Claire Spanner	Nurse	Cheltenham
Ms Helen Mitchell	Assistant Practitioner (A&E)	Stratford upon Avon
Dr Eleanor Hunter	Paediatrician	Manchester
Mrs Kingsley Belton	Speech & Language Therapist	Nailsea
Dr Veena Aggarwal	GP Registrar	Wandsworth, London
Mr Douglas Booker	Regional Clean Air Champion	Lancaster
Dr Anna Moore	Respiratory doctor	London
Dr Mike Tomson	Medical Educator and GP	Sheffield
Professor Paul Lewis	Regional Air Quality Champion Wales	Llanelli
Miss Lynsey Stronach	ANP Paediatric Haemodialysis	London
Dr Emma Stockton	Paediatric Anaesthetist	London
Dr Zineb Bentounsi	GP trainee	Milton Keynes
Ms Sophie Stanley	Occupational Therapy Assistant	Putney
Abby Bolland	Occupational Therapist	London
Dr Caitriona Callan	GP Academic Clinical Fellow	Oxford
Dr Stefania Vergnano	Paediatrician	Bristol
Jordan Frazin	Healthcare Software Project Manager	Bristol
Mr Gary Candow	Estates Engineer	Sheffield
Professor Rustam Salman	Professor of clinical neurology and honorary consultant neurologist	Edinburgh
Professor Anil Namdeo	Professor of Air Quality Management	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Emma Forman	Anaesthetist	London
Miss Rachel Donnison	Health and Environmental Insights Specialist	London
Dr Katharine Fallon	GP	Winsford
Dr Sinead Millwood	GP	Manchester
Sarah Hobday	Paediatrician	Derby
Miss Alice Clack	Obstetrics and Gynaecology	London
Layla Siebert	Pharmacist	Manchester
Dr Olivia Adderley	GP trainee	Manchester
Dr Toby Hillman	Respiratory Physician	London
Dr Finella Craig	Palliative Medicine Paediatrician	London
Agnieszka Szmurlo	Dietitian	London
Mr Philip Branford	Environmental and Sustainability Officer	Sheffield
Dr Alexander Robertson	Emergency Medicine Registrar	Edinburgh
Dr Ewan Wallace	Paediatric Anaesthetist	Glasgow
Emma Sheppard	GP	Glasgow
Zoe Simpson	ACP	London
Dr Andrew Long	Paediatrician	Tatsfield
Mrs Clare Nash	Nurse	Bridgnorth
Dr Adrian Plunkett	Paediatrician	Birmingham
Dr T Thiruchelvam	Paediatric Intensivist	London
Dr Victoria Maynard	GP Registrar	Sheffield
Dr Cameron Herbert	Paediatrician	Glasgow
Mr Rainer Buehler	Director of Operations	Oxford
Dr Richard Smith	Medical Journalist	London
Dr Katy Rose	Paediatric Emergency Registrar	Leeds
Dr Susan Langridge	GP	Glasgow
Miss Nicola Moore	Paediatric Physiotherapist	London
Dr Julie McIlwaine	GP	Grantown-on-Spey
Professor Isky Gordon	Radiologist	London
Dr Rajive Mitra	GP	London
Dr Alice Willson	Paediatric registrar	Manchester
Dr Hananh Jacob	Paediatrician	London
Dr Lucy Brooks	Anaesthetist	Leeds
Ms Angela Kerr	Occupational Therapist	Tooting, London
Dr Edwina Lawson	GP	London
Dr Munro Stewart	GP	Dundee
Ms Mairi Kennedy	Occupational Therapist	London
Shital Shah	GP	London
Emily Gallagher	Occupational Therapist	London
Dr Chris Newman	GP	Margate
Dr Heather Watson	GP	London
Dr Camilla Kingdon	Paediatrician	London
Professor David Edwards	Paediatrics and Neonatal Medicine	London
Dr Al Miles	GP	Grantown-on-Spey
Ms Fareeda Riaz	Professional Development Nurse	London
Dr Gerard Reissmann	GP	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Katia Florman	Respiratory Registrar	London
Tracy Lyons	Pharmacist	Bournemouth
Dr Jacqueline Robbins	Junior Doctor	Oxford
Dr Meenakshi Verma	Dermatologist	Hampstead
Dr Previna Chana	GP	Kingston upon Thames
Sabina Dragoci	Health Care Assistant	Sutton
Dr Naomi Adelson	GP	Birmingham
Dr Mareeni Raymond	GP	London
Miss Eilidh Miles	Student	Grantown on Spey
Dr Mara Sittampalam	Neurologist	London
Dr Sharon Christy	GP	London
Mr James Dixon	Associate Director - Sustainability	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Marion Neffgen	Psychiatrist	London
Dr Faran Akbar	GP Registrar	Manchester
Dr João Martins	Public Health Specialty Registrar	Birmingham
Dr Sally Wilmshurst	Paediatric Anaesthetist	London
Ms Melissa Benyon	Physiotherapist	Helston, Cornwall
Miss Grace Marshall	Project Manager	Chester
Dr Fiona Godlee	Ambassador, U.K. Health Alliance on Climate Change	Cambridge
Dr Andrew Melton	GP	Grantown-on-Spey
Dr Harriet Cooper	Internal Medicine Trainee	Alton
Dr Becca Elson	ICU Doctor	Colchester
Dr Anna Jones	Public health doctor	Brighton
Dr Paul McGurnaghan	Public health doctor	Belfast
Miss Gemma Bea	Nurse	Moreton-in-Marsh
Dr Nicholas Browne	GP	Bolton
Professor Nicholas Hopkinson	Respiratory Medicine	London
Dr Poppy Denniston	Respiratory Doctor	London
Mr Phil Taylor	Data Quality Manager	Shoreham-by-sea
Dr Laura Benjamin	Hospital Consultant	London
Dr Malcolm Coulthard	Paediatrician	Hexham
Dr Tony Waterston	Paediatrician	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Gail Young	GP	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Amit Chatterjee	GP	Newcastle Upon Tyne
Dr Pam Wortley	GP	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Michael Miller	GP	Brighton, Hove
Barnaby Hirons	Respiratory Doctor	London
Professor John Spencer	Professor of Clinical Education, and General Practitioner	Newcastle
Dr Amelia Cussans	Psychiatry trainee	London
Dr Paula Mulvenna	Consultant Clinical Oncologist	Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr Andrew Whittamore	GP	Portsmouth
Dr Lizzie Harris	Clinical geneticist	Newcastle upon Tyne
Miss Karen Wilson	Health Care Assistant	Cheltenham
Jennifer McNesfield	Physiotherapist	Salisbury
Dr Emily Watson	GP	Newcastle upon Tyne
Jaime Gray	Speech and language therapist	Sheffield
Miss Sian Butler	Paediatric Intensive Care Nurse	Berkeley
Dr Roshni Bhudia	GP Trainee	London
Dr Louise Medforth	GP	London
Miss Laura Poletti	Nurse	London
Dr Tim Malone	Research Fellow	Newton Abbot
Dr Rachel Parker	GP and NEL Air Quality Clinical Lead	London
Jaime Gray	Speech and language therapist	Sheffield
Miss Sian Butler	Paediatric Intensive Care Nurse	Berkeley
Dr Roshni Bhudia	GP Trainee	London
Dr Louise Medforth	GP	London
Dr Charles Elliot	Physician	Sheffield
Dr Zoe Rawlinson	GP	London
Dr Sarah Capewell	GP	Cambuslang
Dr David Cummins	GP	North Shields
Dr James Fraser	Paediatric Intensivist	Bristol
Dr Patrick Farrell	GP Trainee	Glasgow
Dr Shehla Baig	GP	Balham
Isabella di Carpegna	Sr Director Talent Acquisition	London
Dr Patricia D Jackson OBE	Paediatrician	Edinburgh
Dr Christianne Guillotte	GP Trainee	London
Dr Morwenna Hodin	Paediatrician	Bath
Dr Anna Thursby-Pelham	Paediatrician	Bristol
Dr Lesley-Jane McAuley	GP	Kirkintilloch
Dr D Mark McAuley	GP	Glasgow
Mrs Najma Timms	Speech and Language Therapist	Sheffield
Chris maughan	Health and Social care manager	Cheltenham
Dr Catherine Rose	Consultant Paediatrician	Chester Le Street
Dr Sian Ashby	GP	Glasgow
Jackie Bailey	Social Worker	London
Dr Judith Anderson	Psychotherapist	Oxford
Dr Lucy Reynolds	Paediatrician	Glasgow
Dr Nadja Van Ginneken	GP	Liverpool
Mrs Claire Bull	Speech and Language therapist	Sheffield

NOTES TO EDITORS

Ride for their Lives

Ride for their Lives is an international collaboration of healthcare providers riding together to explore the actions the healthcare community must take to protect the planet for their patients and children. Through their days of cycling, they build hope, develop resilience, celebrate success, and spark constructive conversation. Ride for their LIves started in October 2021 where 70 UK-based paediatric and other healthcare providers carried messages from London to world leaders at COP26 in Glasgow in an 8-day cycle ride. They have grown into a frontline movement energising and inspiring action on air pollution and the wider climate and nature crisis with 75 events in 4 continents so far.

Ride for their Lives is grateful to C40 Cities, World Health Organization, International Hospitals Federation, University Hospitals of Geneva, Global Climate and Health Alliance, UK Health Alliance on Climate Change, and many other organisations for their participation in the campaign.

Air pollution and the climate emergency:

The Royal College for Paediatric and Children’s Health states that almost all children (more than 99%) are exposed to one or more climate and environmental risks to their health. UNICEF estimates that approximately one billion children - nearly half - are at ‘extremely high risk’ of impacts from the climate crisis.

WHO states that air pollution is "one of the biggest environmental threats to human health, alongside climate change” and almost 99% of the world’s population live in places where air pollution levels exceed WHOs guidelines.

The causes of air pollution are often the same as the causes of the climate emergency – the majority of air pollution is from burning fossil fuels for power, transport and industry. And because the causes are largely the same, the solutions can also be the same - renewable energy, electric mobility, public transport, and more walking and cycling.

Globally, air pollution kills an estimated 7 million people a year. In the UK it causes an estimated 28,000-36,000 premature deaths a year - including that of 9-year-old Ella Kissi-Debrah, who died in 2013. In a landmark case in December 2020 the coroner named air pollution as a cause of death.

Air pollution contributes to respiratory conditions like asthma, as well as lung cancer and heart disease. Evidence is emerging that it also contributes to dementia, low birth weight and type 2 diabetes. Increasingly it is being linked to mental illness as well as physical illness. Recently the World Health Organisation tightened its guidelines on air pollution levels, describing it as “on a par with other major global health risks such as unhealthy diet and tobacco smoking”. As with the climate emergency, kids are worst affected. They are closer to exhaust fumes, their lungs and brains are still developing, and they breathe faster.

Poorer children in urban settings are most exposed, increasing the impact of social inequalities.

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NOTES TO EDITORS

Ride for their Lives