Ambalika Das (pictured), consultant neonatologist at our Trust, has won the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health’s (RCPCH) Voice Champion award in recognition of her leading role in launching the Happy, Healthy and Well project.

The project, which is being shared with schools and youth centres across the country, aims to help children learn from an early age to live healthier lifestyles. It’s something Ambalika became passionate about after seeing how Covid-19 had a disproportionate effect on those with underlying health conditions.

It became a family affair for Ambalika, who is also our neonatal lead, as her two children, Angelika, 20, and 16-year-old Sohan, both got involved, putting together slide decks and interviewing doctors for videos.

She said: “I’ve been a volunteer ambassador with the RCPCH for the last two years and when I saw the impact of Covid, I thought there must be something we can do better.

“It’s more difficult to change our behaviour as adults, however, if we develop a healthy lifestyle as children, it’s more likely something we’ll continue throughout our lives. It’s not just about teaching, it’s active learning, encouraging children to research for themselves, learn, practice and teach it to other children. It’s not only about physical health either, it will also help improve children’s mental wellbeing.”

Once youngsters have learned about healthy behaviours themselves, they will then present to other groups of children, instilling what they’ve learned on why a healthy lifestyle is important.

Ambalika developed the project over the last 18 months, alongside her clinical commitments, working closely with RCPCH &Us, the college’s engagement group aimed at children and families. It was officially launched in June and includes an information pack for teachers, as well as online videos from experts.

One key aspect to its success is that children, who are RCPCH &Us members (including her own), worked alongside Ambalika in putting it together. Ambalika also found the support of RCPCH&Us colleagues invaluable, particularly Emma Sparrow and Alison Guiton.

Ambalika added: “It has been created for and by children. I’ve spent my entire career working with children and am passionate about making a difference. It was a complete surprise to get the award, and very nice to have the recognition. It’s exciting to see the project rolled out and how enthusiastic everyone is about it.”