The role and function of the allied health professional (AHP) should never be underestimated. AHPs have an essential role to play in the provision of health and social care. They are engaged in millions of client contacts every week with a workforce of over 152 000, they practice across all health and social care settings including hospitals, in people's homes, clinics, surgeries, within the justice system, in local authorities, in private and voluntary sectors and primary, secondary and tertiary education (Allied Health Professions Federation (AHPF), 2019a). AHPs are the third largest workforce in the NHS and focus on the provision of consistent, person-centred, preventive and therapeutic care for children and adults across many sectors. These accredited and trusted professionals are undertaking a crucial function. The scope and depth of AHPs' skills and their ability to make every contact count means that they are ideally placed to lead, support transformative changes and continue to contribute to the public health agenda. This group of professionals spend time with millions of people in the UK every day and are clearly well placed to offer health advice and support to a variety of different communities and populations.
This well established and very large workforce has a massive potential to reach out at scale and support the nation's health and wellbeing—whether signposting to smoking cessation services or offering brief lifestyle interventions. Without doubt the interventions that AHPs can make to health and wellbeing have largely gone unnoticed. This group of skilled care providers is an under-utilised resource and a significant part of the wider public health workforce.
It is important to recognise the unique contribution that AHPs are making in improving patient outcomes for adults, delivering on public health including mental health and reducing increasing costs of services through prevention and the provision of more efficient treatment. The AHPF, working with all the public health bodies, has published the first UK-wide AHP Public Health Strategic Framework that intentionally sets out the contribution that AHPs can make to the public health of the nation. The Strategic Framework (AHPF, 2019b) is impressive and has a focus on the social determinants of health as well as setting goals in order to combat health inequalities. Using five goals and priority actions the strategy spells out how it will improve or protect the public's health as AHPs continue to develop trusting relationships with people, extend their expertise and skills as they develop a holistic approach to health and wellbeing.
The Royal Society for Public Health and PHE (2015) previously undertook a national survey with the support of the AHP professional bodies, which showed a clear desire from AHPs as well as the public to have health conversations on a variety of different topics ranging from physical activity to obesity. The AHPF strategy sets out plans to extend even further the contribution that AHPs are making to prevention and how they can deliver public health benefits. Most AHPs are already embedding public health in their roles, partnerships and the services that they offer people. The time is right for AHPs and public health—it is essential that public health leaders see and acknowledge the massive potential of AHPs as a central component of the public health system. Nurses working collaboratively and having meaningful conversations with AHPs can change the ways in which public health services are delivered as the skills that these professional groups possess are complementary. We must concentrate our collective skills and efforts, focusing on redesign and measuring impact as we make a difference and make a noticeable impression on the public health and prevention agendas from a national and global perspective.