Taking Action Towards Climate-resilient, Low-carbon, Health Systems: Perspectives from Canadian Health Leaders and Healthcare Professionals

Overview

Journal Healthc Manage Forum

Specialty Health Services

Date 2024 May 13

PMID 38739689

Authors

Brittany Barber

Daniel G Rainham

Peter Tyedmers

Trevor Vandertuin

Gillian Ritcey

Sean D Christie

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Climate change poses significant public health and health system challenges including increased demand for health services due to chronic and acute health impacts from vector-borne diseases, heat-related illness, and injury from severe weather. As climate change worsens, so do its effects on health systems such as increasing severity of weather extremes causing damage to healthcare infrastructure and interference with supply chains. Ironically, health sectors globally are significant contributors to climate change, generating an estimated 5% of global emissions. Achieving "net zero" health systems require large-scale change with shared decision-making to coordinate a pan-Canadian approach to creating climate-resilient and low-carbon healthcare. In this article, we discuss healthcare professionals' and health leaders' perceptions of responsibility for practicing and advocating for climate-resilient and low-carbon healthcare in Canada.

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