THE ROLE OF PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTITIONERS ON

CLIMATE CHANGE AND ITS IMPACT ON HEALTH,

ENVIRONMENT, AND ECONOMY
PHS 305 (SEMINARS IN PUBLIC HEALTH)
PRESENTED BY:
EJITOYE ABIODUN O. NOU223143463
UMORU OJOMA O. NOU223136558
ADAMA ISAIAH U. NOU233422745
ADEYEMO ESTHER A. NOU223140077
AJAYI TOLULOPE NOU223136609

SEPTEMBER,
2023
NATIONAL OPEN UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA | McCarthy STUDY
CENTER OBALENDE, LAGOS.
SECTION 1 TABLE OF CONTENT
 INTRODUCTION

SECTION 2
 LITERATURE REVIEW
 DEFINITION
 HISTORY
 CLIMATE CHANGE
 CAUSES OF CLIMATE CHANGE
 IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON HEALTH, ENIVIRONMENT AND ECONOMY
 DIRECT IMPACT
 INDIRECT IMPACT
 ROLES OF PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTITIONERS ON THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE
 ASSESSMENT
 POLICY DEVELOPMENT
 ASSURANCE

SECTION 3
 CONCLUSION
 REFERENCE
 SECTION 1
INTRODUCTION

The effects of climate change are being felt unevenly around the world, and the countries

least responsible for greenhouse gas emissions are often facing the most brutal consequences

(Joe McCarthy and Erica Sanchez, 2019). With accelerating frequency and intensity, severe

storms, heatwaves, wildfires, droughts and other extreme weather events are having ever-

more evident impacts on human health and wellbeing. Among these impacts are heat-related

illness, injuries and losses due to flooding; exacerbation of asthma, respiratory and

cardiovascular conditions with air pollution; and growing risks of vector-borne diseases

(malaria, dengue, Lyme disease); water-borne diseases (diarrhea, cholera) and chemical

pollutants; undernutrition; and forced migration (EBI et al., 2017).

 PURPOSES AND OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this study is to explore the roles of Public Health Practitioners on climate
change and its impact on health, environment and the economy. The specific objectives are
as follows:

 To discuss the meaning and history of public health in Nigeria

 To explore the impact of climate change on health, environment and economy.

 To also explore the intervention of public health practitioners towards curbing

these change impacts.
 SECTION 2

DEFINITIONS
 Public health is the science of protecting and improving the health of people and their
communities (CDC, 2023). Which is achieved by promoting healthy lifestyles, researching
diseases and injury prevention, and detecting, preventing and responding to infectious
diseases.

 Public health is an interdisciplinary field. For example, epidemiology, biostatistics, social

sciences and management of health services are all relevant. Other sub-fields include
environmental health, community health, behavioral health, health economics, public
policy, mental health, health education, health politics, occupational safety, disability, oral
health, gender issues in health, and reproductive health (PERDIGUERO, 2015).
2.1 History of Public Health in Nigeria

The history of Public Health System in Nigeria is linked to two

important periods in the country, namely: Colonial and Post-Colonial
eras. These eras were marked by drastic changes in the approach to
public health care delivery (INYANG, 2021)
2.2 Climate Change

Climate is often defined loosely as the average weather at a particular

place, incorporating such features as temperature, precipitation, humidity,
and windiness. And as weather varies from day to day, so too does
climate vary, from daily day-and-night cycles up to periods of geologic
time hundreds of millions of years long. In a very real sense, climate
variation is a redundant expression, climate is always varying. No two
years are exactly alike, nor decades, centuries, or millennia (STEPHEN,
2020).
2.3.1 Causes of Climate Change

 Generating Power

 Manufacturing Goods

 Deforestation

 Using Transportation

 Producing Food

 Powering Buildings

 Improper Disposal of consumables (BAMS, 2017).

2.4 Impact of Climate Change on Health, Environment and Economy
2.4.1 Direct Impact

Injuries, disease and deaths due to extreme weather events:

i. Increased frequency and intensity of heat waves.

ii. Excess heat-related mortality and incidence of heat exhaustion

iii. Aggravated circulatory, cardiovascular, respiratory and kidney

diseases Indigenous and traditional peoples are also expected to suffer
the most Health losses caused by disasters such as storms, hurricanes,
tornadoes, and floods (EDENHOFER 2015).
2.4.2 Indirect Impacts

a) Indirect Impacts Through Natural Systems

i. Airways diseases and allergens e.g., asthma

ii. Food-and-water borne disease e.g., cholera

iii. Vector-borne diseases e.g., malaria

b) Indirect impacts through socio-economic systems

i. Food and water insecurity and under-nutrition

ii. Occupational health risk and vulnerable populations:

iii. Forced displacements, mental illness and stress (EDENHOFER 2015).

FLOOD WITHIN OGUN RIVER BANK, LAGOS NIGERIA (2022)
2.5 The roles of Public Health Practitioners on the
Impact of Climate Change on
Health, Environment and Economy

Public Health Practitioners have 3 basic core functions which are:

 Assessment (IOM, 2015).

 Policy Development

 Health Assurance
2.5.1 Assessment

Public health assessment entails collecting data, and analyzing, investigating and
identifying public health problems; it informs policy development and sets the
stage for public health assurance, the second and third of the core functions (IOM,
2015).

Assessment involves

i. Monitoring health status with regard to climate-sensitive outcomes

ii. Investigation and diagnosis of health impacts linked to climate-related hazards.

2.5.2 Policy Development
Policy development is the second phase of the core functions cycle; it builds on the
diagnosis from assessment, and encompasses identification and planning of actions
that will be carried out and monitored in the assurance phase (AUSTIN et al.,
2016).

Policy development involves not only government efforts to establish laws,

regulations and procedures but also voluntary practices of private actors and efforts
to communicate with the public. policy development covers:

i. Informing, educating and empowering populations toward climate resilience

ii. Mobilizing partnerships to anticipate and respond to health threats from climate
change;
2.5.2.1 Mobilize Partnership
 Three areas of partnership for health and climate governance:

i. Coordination across different levels of government on health monitoring,

diagnosis and policy implementation;

ii. Collaboration of public health with non-health sectors, particularly to

share health-related epidemiological, vulnerability, program monitoring
and evaluation data; and

iii. Partnerships with private and non-governmental organizations to

implement programs to achieve specific health outcomes (AUSTIN et al.,
2016).
2.5.3 Assurance

 Assurance is the third phase of the core functions cycle; it is an

implementation phase that grows out of policy development, where
policies are put to practice through regulations, programs, workforce
training, and other activities. Assurance also completes the direct
feedback loop through evaluation to the monitoring and diagnosis done
under the assessment phase (SEMENZA, 2015).
Conclusion

Our exploratory review indicated that the role of healthcare professionals, individually or
collectively, through professional organizations, could include informing and alerting
patients, individuals, communities and decision-makers about the association of climate
and environment change with health and the need to act to limit and mitigate these risks to
protect health.

We believe that healthcare professionals have a professional public health duty to foster
the assessment and implementation of effective interventions, to improve the education of
their peers, and to keep informing and alerting various audiences through potentially
appropriate communication interventions.
 REFERENCES
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 Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (BAMS) (2017). Explaining Extreme Events of 2017 from a Climate
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 Ebi K.L., Ogden N.H., Semenza J.C., Woodward A. (2017). Detecting and Attributing Health Burdens to Climate Change.
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Cambridge University Press; 2014
 Inyang Ating (2021). History of public health in nigeria
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 REFERENCES (CONTD)

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 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Summary for Policymakers. In: Masson-Delmotte
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https://www.britannica.com/science/climate-change/Abrupt-climate-changes-in-Earth-history
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