Public health | Climate crisis is a ‘risk amplifier’, doctors warn

A group of doctors are sounding the alarm over the climate crisis and say Canada’s health care system is unprepared for its worsening effects.

According to Montreal family physician Claudel Pétrin-Desrosiers, climate change is a global “risk amplifier” that threatens air quality and access to food and water while exacerbating seasonal allergies and Lyme disease transmitted by ticks.

Finola Hackett, a locum physician working in rural communities in southern Alberta, says ignoring the health risks of the climate crisis “would be very expensive in the long run,” both “in terms of dollars and lives”.

Both doctors believe that acting now could save lives.

“It’s motivating enough to get us to do the work,” says Dr.^D Petrin-Desrosiers.

The D^D Hackett and the D^D Pétrin-Desrosiers are the main co-authors of a report on Canada published last week alongside a global report produced by the “Lancet Countdown on health and climate change”, itself published by the medical journal Tea Lancet.

The report of Lancet notes the health risks of global warming, citing as an example the “heat dome” that settled over British Columbia in the summer of 2021.

The “heat dome”, which had caused more than 600 deaths in the province, would have been “nearly impossible” without the influence of the climate crisis, the expert-backed report says.

The Canadian account attests that the health system has the potential to mitigate climate-related health risks, but is far from ready, especially as the COVID-19 pandemic adds to the burden considerable for more than two years.

He also warns that heat waves could increase the number of emergency room visits by 10-15%, which will strain the work of health professionals and reduce the quality of care.

The D^D Hackett says that in Alberta, she observed patients with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) during periods of air pollution caused by smoke from wildfires.

Both doctors also say they are concerned about the effects of climate change on mental health, saying they have seen an increase in cases of post-traumatic stress disorder following extreme weather events like flooding.

The D^D Pétrin-Desrosiers finds this phenomenon worrying, because access to mental health care is already lacking, with the Canadian public system struggling with long waiting lists.

Health Canada’s own climate and health assessment, released earlier this year, says global warming is “already affecting the health of Canadians” and that without concerted action it will continue to lead to injuries, illnesses and death.

Greater warming will bring greater risks, but many problems could be avoided “if Canada scales up its adaptation efforts quickly and significantly,” the report argues.

The links between climate change and health are also at the heart of Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam’s annual report, released last week.

The report states that “urgent public health action is needed to prepare for, protect against and respond to the current and future health impacts of climate change”.

Reports from Health Canada and M^me Tam stress the importance of involving those most affected by climate change in adaptation planning, noting that this vulnerability is often linked to other social inequalities, such as low income, inadequate housing and insecurity. eating.

Such reports, as well as some provincial measures, show some awareness of the health risks posed by climate change, recognizes the D^D Hackett. However, she points out that when it comes to measures implemented in clinics, hospitals and health organizations, Canada is “only in the early stages”.

The report also indicates that the governments of British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec had taken steps to assess the links between climate change and health, but the D^D Hackett says such initiatives are “fragmented” and lack national coordination.

Likewise, the D^D Pétrin-Desrosiers points out that Health Canada had committed on paper to improving the resilience of the health care system, but that this commitment has not yet translated into action and that the current pace is not sufficient to prepare the system for health to the challenges ahead.

The doctors’ report recommends that provincial and territorial health authorities undertake climate resilience analyzes to identify priority actions. It also calls on Ottawa to create a national secretariat “to coordinate the transformation of Canada’s health care system” into one that is resilient to the effects of climate change.

It also suggests that health professionals be trained in climate risks, and that emergency health care plans be put in place in the event of extreme weather events.

The federal government is expected to finalize a national climate change adaptation strategy by the end of this year, with health and wellness being one of five key areas.