Star gets first hand look at communities strategy
AS WELL as developing an action plan to better support Calderdale’s black, Asian and ethnic minority communities through the pandemic, top Hollywood actor Samuel L. Jackson also received literature relating to it.
Regional health partnership support officer for Calderdale Council and West Yorkshire Integrated Care System (ICS), Pam Bhupal, said teams managed to give a pack produced by Calderdale anti-racism movement to the actor, recently filming in Halifax at the Piece Hall, where scenes for Marvel’s new TV series Secret Invasion were being shot.
Calderdale Health and Well being Board were reviewing progress on a health action plan to help reduce the impact of COVID-19 on the borough’s black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities
Ms Bhupal said a lot of work had been done to protect BAME communities during the two years of the COVID-19 pandemic so far.
Conversations had taken place with public health
teams, residents, and community organisations about their thoughts and fears about the pandemic.
Six weeks into lockdown, an eastern European woman asked for her thoughts had responded “what pandemic?” indicating the challenges.
She had no TV or smartphone
and teams began realising that communicating messages was a key issue.
There was a lot of fear in communities that if anyone caught the virus and needed to go into hospital they would never come out again – even two months ago this was still an issue, said Ms Bhupal.
Goals were set by the partnership, all in the context of the journey through the last two years, during which Calderdale was subject to the longest period of restrictions nationally.
The resulting action plan had seen the start of sustaining and strengthening a lot of relationships that were not there before the pandemic, for example the support given to taxi and private hire companies.
“We have really listened to what people have said to us and acted accordingly, and vice-versa,” she said.