Experts have described climate change as the greatest health-related problem globally today. A physician is responsible for guiding patients about the harmful impact of global warming while spreading awareness about how this problem concerns society today. We cannot neglect the important character played by the public health sector in educating/empowering patients. This empowerment puts people in control of their mental/physical well-being. Similarly, nurses/doctors educate patients about how the threat of global warming looms over everyone’s heads and what people should do to alleviate it. Let’s discuss the public health sector’s involvement in spreading awareness about climate change today.
Biostatistics and epidemiology
What’s the connection between environmental challenges and the duties of the public health sector? We cannot ignore how climate change’s related to several diseases that threaten the well-being of society in the 21st century. Scientists have been documenting how TB, Ebola, and plagues are direct results of the harmful impact of global warming on humanity. Studies by the CDC and the WHO have stated that folks may acquire respiratory, cardiovascular, and gastrointestinal problems because of the extreme weather events in the world. In 2021, a study even claimed that climate change caused 5 million deaths a year! A physician can influence society to learn more about these problems and lessen their effects properly.
Experts believe physicians can motivate people to become more environmentally conscious and make eco-friendly decisions. By raising awareness about climate change, healthcare practitioners can stimulate others to change their behavioral patterns. So, which physicians influence people’s decisions?
Biostatisticians and epidemiologists have proven themselves for the survival of a nation during an ongoing pandemic. However, we cannot properly understand how these two great disciplines impact public health without putting epidemiology vs. biostatistics to realize how they differ. Let’s discuss how they differ in the field of science:
- Epidemiology focuses on diseases’ frequency (distribution) and their underlying causes. In this discipline, society is the patient under consideration. So, epidemiologists study which issues harm a community’s well-being and what causes these health-related problems.
- Biometry is essentially the maths behind biology. Biostatistics provides the necessary statistical information epidemiologists require to formulate their opinions. Trials, surveys, and experiments allow biostatisticians to understand how health-related issues develop statistically.
Scientific disciplines and public health
Since the late 20th century, experts have been asking physicians to contribute to the mission of teaching people about the dangers of climate change. Even today, they demand doctors join the fight against the monster of climate change since they can influence patients’ decision-making abilities. We’ll discuss how epidemiologists and biostatisticians – among other healthcare professionals – can raise awareness regarding climate-related issues today. Therefore, this is what we need the public health sector to do:
1. Making resolutions:
Physicians don’t only motivate present-day generations to become more eco-conscious, but they can protect the environment for future generations as well. The World Medical Association recently released a resolution that seeks to protect our descendants’ right to thrive in a healthy world. Now, these resolutions can encourage more people in society to plant trees, conserve water, and choose sustainability. That’s how the public health sector can help people reduce their carbon footprint.
2. Educating people:
We’ve already mentioned how the public health sector can contribute to the educational endeavors seeking to teach people the dangers of climate change. Physicians can directly educate a community about how protecting our environment has become imperative for our collective health.
Recently, the WFPHA announced their lobbying efforts to advocate for radical changes in our normal practices for public health. This massive education can make future pandemics more controllable.
3. Identifying factors:
Biostatisticians and epidemiologists identify the environment-related factors causing a constant downfall of the health of society today. Leveraging statistics, these experts can show how a contaminated environment leads to diseases in societies. Biologists demonstrate a connection between air/water pollution and modern-day pandemics through surveys. They recognize links between our local infrastructure and the well-being of a community to spread more awareness.
4. Holding events:
How do you spread awareness regarding any topic? Holding events can help you access more people and educate them about the healthcare problems associated with environmental challenges. Since we’re living in the 21st century, many of these events can be, and are being, held online to access the public easily. For instance, the Global Climate and Health Alliance holds events to take initiatives for handling the climate change issue. These events enable healthcare practitioners to speak in unison regarding how global warming impacts people’s well-being. So, this community took the initiative in March to lobby against the era of fossil fuels and advocate for the usage of renewable resources.
5. Issuing statements:
Healthcare organizations’ declarations aren’t just practical utterances regarding the emergencies caused by climate change, but they’re also influential in spreading massive awareness. For instance, the British and Australian Medical Associations described climate change as a health emergency for elaborating its dangers to public health. These declarations motivate more folks to learn how environmental challenges concern their societal well-being. We’re watching enterprises such as PIH calling climate change a global health emergency and explaining how these changes are causing an increase in HIV cases worldwide.
6. Creating policies:
Policymaking takes lobbying and advocacy to the next stage. Many healthcare associations are now openly labeling the propagation of eco-consciousness as their medical objective. You can read what the WMA stated about the role of physicians in tackling environmental challenges today. So, we can watch these policymaking endeavors spread more awareness in society about the harmful impact of climate change on our society’s well-being. They have declared that healthcare professionals today are duty-bound to discuss these issues with patients. The WMA presented itself as an international platform for researching these problems and spreading awareness about our changing climate.
Conclusion
We’ve established the connection between ecological problems and public health concerns. A WHO report suggests climate change would cause an additional 25,000 deaths annually – it’s causing 5+ million deaths already – between 2030 and 2050. These deaths would result from malaria, diarrhea, and malnutrition caused by climate change. So, what’s the public sector use in this scenario? Well, nurses and doctors are in a unique position to inform people about climate change and its many dangers.
We believe that the public health sector can encourage people to become more eco-conscious today by advocating, educating, and empowering patients. We’ve mentioned how healthcare organizations are already issuing statements about climate change to spread awareness. Physicians should engage in policymaking and declare climate change as a problem worth patients’ attention.