David Black is a public health worker with 30 years experience around health promotion and inequalities in health. He was one of  Scotland’s first Community Development health workers and developed both practice and policy for Greater Glasgow Health Board. While working as a Health Education Officer in Glasgow (1978-90)  He and Susan Laughlin produced a training pack “Unemployment and Health - Resources, Action, Discussion, Information” (1985).

 

As communications officer for the Glasgow Healthy City Project 1990-95 he continued his focus on community needs and inequalities. While there he developed a series of community health conferences, supported Glasgow based national and international conferences and published a range of support materials both locally and nationally. He has also jointly authored a national research based action pack on poverty and health for the Public Health Alliance (1994). This study of community based poverty and health projects was used very successfully used across the UK.

 

For the past fifteen years he has run Communicable Health, a research design and project development partnership which works solely on public health issues. He has produced work for the Scottish Office, WHO and NHS Health Scotland as well as local community groups and other agencies.

 

David is an experienced and able communicator and has written and presented on a wide range of public health issues.

Jordanhill College 1975                        Teaching Diploma, Primary Education

Leeds University, 1979                   Post Graduate Diploma in Health Education

Stirling University, 1988                  Msc in Applied Social Research

Glasgow Caledonian 2010          MsC in Health History

After coming late in life to further education (I took my O levels and Highers at evening classes in my late 20’s) I trained as a school teacher and worked for a short time in a Glasgow nursery school. I became a health promotion officer in Greater Glasgow Health Board (1978- 1990) working on issues around community development and health and inequalities in health. I then spent six years (1990-1996) with the Glasgow Healthy City Project ( a WHO Health for All Project) building support for cross agency work addressing Glasgow’s poor health record. Since 1996 I have managed “Communicable Health” an independent research and design consultancy working on health inequality and health improvement issues.

 

I have in recent years worked with a wide range of organisations and community projects across the United Kingdom developing research in the health field around issues related to disadvantage and health.

I was an honorary fellow in the Department of Community Health Sciences at Edinburgh University (1999- 2009) and a research mentor for the Scottish Community Action Research Fund (2005- 2009).

 

As a freelance public health consultant my work has had a broad scope ranging from research and writing work for a range of organisations eg:

 

o      City Planning for Health and Sustainable Development WHO Copenhagen. 1998)

o      Poverty and Health: Tools for Change, S Laughlin, D Black (1995): Public Health Trust.

o      Designed to Involve: Public Involvement in the New Primary Care Structures, Scottish Consumer Council/Scottish Office. 1999.

o      Assessment of Health outside the Health Sector in Harris A, Need to know - A guide to needs assessment for Primary Care Led Commissioning Churchill-Livingstone1997

 

Research 1996-2010

Over this time period I have been involved in more than 50 research projects most of these as principal researcher, they have ranged from local work for community health projects such as: evaluation of the North Glasgow Community Food Project, Evaluation of Govan milk token initiative, Evaluation of the Urban Fox -East End football and gangs project in Glasgow. I have also carried out evaluations and best value reviews for health boards and local authorities: e.g. Scoping study on Gender and Mental Health for GG+C NHS Board, Best Value study on residential care homes for Renfrewshire Social Work Department, Evaluation of "Smoke Free Highland “ for Highland Health Board.1999-2002. I have also carried out work for national organisations and the Scottish Government: e.g., Review of the Health Promoting Health Service approach for NHS Health Scotland, Development and production of guideline document on Public Involvement in the new primary care structures for the Scottish Office, Mapping of networking and support activity for the community food and health sector in Scotland, for NHS Health Scotland.

 

Examples of project development work

o      With a colleague developed and carried out an oral history project on the development of Health Education/ Promotion in Scotland for NHS Health Scotland (2008)

o      Researched, wrote and designed the publication on best practice in community growing for the Scottish Community Diet Project (2002)

o      Curated GGHB’s exhibition for Glasgow’s Year as European City of Culture (1990). This exhibition ‘Clean Water, Green Ladies, Cod-liver Oil and Orange Juice’ was a history of 100 years of public health in Glasgow.

    ◦    Researched, designed and managed the GGHB input to the Glasgow Garden Festival (1998)

 

Teaching and development work

I was a tutor (3years 1984-87) for the Open University on the 2nd level course “Health and Disease” (U205)

As honorary fellow in the Department of Community Health Sciences from 1994 – 2010 I taught on the Health Promotion MSc.

 

Conference Presentations

I have presented papers both keynote and workshop, at a number of local, national and international conferences and seminars. These have included conferences organised by, the Health Education Board for Scotland, the United Kingdom Public Health Alliance, The World Health Organization and the EU and IUHPE.

Research and writing work for a range of organisations e.g.:

For the WHO David developed the format for a series of books on sustainable development then with a partner researched, wrote and produced Vol 2 in the series. City Planning for Health and Sustainable Development WHO Copenhagen. (1998)



With a colleague developed, researched, wrote and produced a national action pack on poverty and health for Rowntree Trust/ PHA (1994). This study of community based poverty and health projects led to the development of a national support project



For the Scottish Executive researched and designed -Designed to Involve: Public Involvement in the New Primary Care Structures, Scottish Consumer Council/Scottish Office. (1999)



Churchill-Livingstone publishers - Assessment of Health outside the Health Sector in Harris A, Need to know - A guide to needs assessment for Primary Care Led Commissioning (1997)



Examples of project development work

David researched, wrote and designed the publication on best practice in community growing for the Scottish Community Diet Project (2002)



David curated GGHB’s exhibition for Glasgow’s Year as European City of Culture (1990). This exhibition ‘Clean Water, Green Ladies, Cod-liver Oil and Orange Juice’ was a history of 100 years of public health in Glasgow.



Researched designed and managed the GGHB input to the Glasgow Garden Festival (1998) the fitness tents and Physic Garden were very popular.



Design and production of publications for a range of clients:

GGHB Health promotion, UK Public Health Alliance, Glasgow Drug Action Team, Women’s Health Team GGHB, WHO,  Scottish Office, most Scottish Health Boards, SPCERH, Age Concern, Moray House College, Drumchapel Health Project.



Teaching training and development work

Developed and ran a communications course for community activists 
for East Renfrewshire Council.

Developed and ran a course on the use of the internet for community activists 
for LAPA (Lothian Anti-Poverty Alliance).

As honorary fellow in the Department of Community Health Sciences (2003-2009) 
 taught on the Health Promotion Msc.



Conference Presentations

David has presented papers, both keynote and workshop, at a number of local, national and international conferences and seminars. These have included conferences organised by, the Health Education Board for Scotland, the United Kingdom Public Health Alliance, The World Health Organization and the EU and IUHPE. 





Publications

•    Growing Interest: a taste of community growing in Scotland  SCDP 2002.

•    Designed to involve: public involvement in the new primary care structures, 
Scottish Consumer Council/Scottish Office. 1999.

•    Equity in Health, D Black, M Mittlemark in Effectiveness in Health Promotion 
IUHPE/EU 1999.

•    City Planning for Health and Sustainable Development, D Black, S Laughlin. 
WHO Copenhagen. 1998

•    Assessment of Health outside the Health Sector; D Black, P Craig, in Harris A, Need to know - A guide to needs assessment for Primary Care Led Commissioning, Churchill-Livingstone, 1997.

•    The development of the Glasgow City Health Plan, D Black, 
in C Price, A Tsouros, Our Cities, Our Future. WHO, Copenhagen. 1996.

•    Poverty and Health: Tools for Change, S Laughlin, D Black (1995): Public Health Trust.

•    The Glasgow City Health Plan, Dr A Lyon, D Black, GHCP. 1995.

•    Community Nursing in Glasgow: A Vision for the Future, 
D Black, Dr J Womersley, K Lockhart, GGHB. 1994.

•    Glasgow's Health: Old Problems - New Opportunities, 
D Black, Dr J Womersley: GGHB. 1993.

•    Your Patients Rights to Welfare Benefits, (4 editions 91 -96) P Barry, D Black, GHCP.

•    Community Development and Health: a Departmental Strategy, 
D Black, S Laughlin, GGHB. 1986.

•    Unemployment and Health Training Pack, D Black, S Laughlin, GGHB. 1986.

•    Glasgow Health of a City, D, Black, J Boswell, S Laughlin, 
D McKinnon and J Buchanan, POHG. 1984.



Articles

•    Health for which all?  David Black Urban Quality Communications Spring 1999.

•    “Poverty and Health: The old alliance needs new partners”, S Laughlin D Black, Benefit Aug 1996.

•    The Glasgow City Health Plan; D Black, World Health, March 1996 WHO, Geneva.

•    Developing a City Health plan: work in Glasgow; D Black, Research for Healthy Cities Newsletter 8, Maastricht, 1995.

•    Community Development and Health Promotion. Radical Health Promotion, 1 (1987).

•    Microcomputers in Interactive Health Education. J Royal Soc Health, 6; (1987), 239-241, (Inglis, Black, McNulty and Gibson).

Quizboards in Health Education. J Royal Soc Health, 2;(1983), 53-55 (V Inglis, D Black).