scholarly journals Climate change education: the need for comprehensive climate change education in environmental public health curriculum

2021 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 114-120
Author(s):  
Maddy Boyko ◽  
Tatianna Desak ◽  
Christy Fleming ◽  
Ken Diplock ◽  
Wendy Pons
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Climate Change ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Climate Change Education ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Health Curriculum ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
Subject Areas

Climate change is a significant issue impacting human and environmental health. Public health professionals will play an important role in responding to this crisis. This research investigated the need for enhanced climate change education for those in a Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspector (CIPHI)-accredited post-secondary program. In February 2020, a web-based survey was sent to public health professionals via the Ontario Branch of the CIPHI and the Association of Supervisors of Public Health Inspectors in Ontario listservs. The survey explored the climate change subject areas most relevant to public health work, reflections of public health professionals’ own climate change education, and opportunities for improvements in climate change education. The results showed most public health professionals are aware of climate change’s relationship to human health, recognize its impacts in their field, and believe in the value of climate change education. Understanding climate change impacts within this public health profession and the need for climate change education can influence future curricula for prospective public health professionals, resulting in professionals entering the field prepared to tackle the challenges of the future.

scholarly journals Climate and Health Concerns of Montana’s Public and Environmental Health Professionals: a Cross-Sectional Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lori Griffin Byron ◽  
Karen L. Akerlof
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Climate Change ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Environmental Health ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Injunctive Norms ◽  
Local Climate ◽  
Public Health Professionals

Abstract Background: Rural health professionals stand at the forefront of community response to climate change, but few studies have assessed their perceptions of the threat. Further, no previous study has compared the opinions of environmental to public health professionals or extensively analyzed the factors related to these experts’ climate beliefs, risk perceptions, and injunctive norms. Methods: In conjunction with the Montana Climate Assessment’s 2021 Special Report on Climate Change and Human Health, the 479 members of the Montana Public Health Association and Montana Environmental Health Association were surveyed during September-October 2019, with 39% completing the survey. We summarized descriptive data about their perceptions of local climate-related changes, and their levels of belief that global warming is happening, is mostly human-caused, is a risk to human health, and that their offices and others should take action. We also evaluated which sociodemographic and risk perception factors related to these climate beliefs, risk perceptions, and injunctive norms. Results: Health professionals in Montana, a politically conservative state, demonstrated high levels of awareness that global warming is happening, human-caused, and a threat to human health, well above reported rates of public concern. Eighty-eight percent said that global warming is occurring and 69% that it is mostly anthropogenic. Sixty-nine percent said that their own health was already affected by climate, and 86% said they were already seeing at least one climate change-related event in their communities. Seventy-two percent said that their departments should be preparing to deal with climate change’s health effects, but just 30% said that it is currently happening. We found no statistically significant differences between Montana environmental health and public health professionals in regression models predicting climate beliefs, risk perception, and injunctive norms. As in studies of the public, political ideology and the observation of local climate-related changes were the strongest factors.Conclusions: Montana environmental and public health officials said that departmental action was needed on climate change, indicating the readiness of rural health professionals to take action. Further studies of health professionals in rural regions are warranted.

scholarly journals Creating a climate changed future with the sea level rise interactive- fiction game ‘Lagos2199’

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Keys ◽  
Matthew Keys
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Change Scenario ◽  
Scenario Development ◽  
Climate Change Education ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Discrete Change

Story-based futures serve an important role in climate change scenario development. Stories are particularly useful in exploring sea level rise possibilities, since we know many coastal areas are specifically vulnerable to accelerating rises in sea level. This discrete change in coastline is different from most other climate change impacts, and offers a clear basis for scientifically-informed, future scenarios. We demonstrate this with a creative world-building effort set in Lagos, Nigeria, in the year 2199. Further, we employ story-based scenario development, and create a learning-oriented, web-based game that allows users to experience stories in an open-ended, text-based adventure style. This collaborative process blended scientific research, story-telling, and artistic co-creation to iteratively construct the game ‘Lagos2199’. The first use-case of Lagos2199 is documented herein, with corresponding survey results from the student users. This work has three core conclusions. First, the unique reality that sea level rise will literally re-draw maps can be leveraged as an entry-point for world-building and scenario development of the future. Second, such a scenario can be blended with storytelling, art, and music to create a multi-dimensional, immersive exploration of ecological and social change. Third, this kind of game experience can serve an important pedagogical role in climate change education. Providing the next generation of citizens with fluency in both climate change impacts and how society will interact with such impacts, is critical for providing adaptive capacity over the coming decades and centuries of accelerating global change.

Climate change – a still neglected topic in medicine and public health programs?

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 78-80
Author(s):  
Rébecca Grojsman ◽  
Stefanie Schütte ◽  
Anneliese Depoux ◽  
Antoine Flahault
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Climate Change ◽  
Health Education ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Health Programs ◽  
Next Generation ◽  
Climate Change Education ◽  
Public Health Programs ◽  
Sustainable Future ◽  
Climate And Health

AbstractHealth professionals are well placed to play a key role in educating people about climate and health. This article maps existing climate change education in medical as well as public health programs, identifies gaps and proposes possible improvements. It is essential that climate and health education enter the broader curriculum as this will also be a foundational part of education and help build the next generation of global expertise needed to create a healthier and more sustainable future.

Nationwide satellite training for public health professionals: Web-based follow-up

2007 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 111-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael K. Peddecord ◽  
Patricia Holsclaw ◽  
Isabel Gomez Jacobson ◽  
Lisa Kwizera ◽  
Kelly Rose ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Public Health Professionals

scholarly journals Mitigating and adapting to climate change: a call to public health professionals

2015 ◽  
Vol 60 (6) ◽  
pp. 631-632 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirko S. Winkler ◽  
Martin Röösli ◽  
Martina S. Ragettli ◽  
Guéladio Cissé ◽  
Pie Müller ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Climate Change ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Public Health Professionals

scholarly journals Climate and health concerns of Montana’s public and environmental health professionals: a cross-sectional study

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lori Byron ◽  
Karen L. Akerlof
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Climate Change ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Environmental Health ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Local Climate ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
Health Association

Abstract Background Rural health professionals stand at the forefront of community response to climate change, but few studies have assessed their perceptions of the threat. Further, no previous study has compared the opinions of environmental to public health professionals or extensively analyzed the factors related to these experts’ climate beliefs, risk perceptions, and issue prioritization. Methods In conjunction with the Montana Climate Assessment’s 2021 Special Report on Climate Change and Human Health, the 479 members of the Montana Public Health Association and Montana Environmental Health Association were surveyed during September–October 2019, with 39% completing the survey. We summarized descriptive data about their perceptions of local climate-related changes and their beliefs that global warming is happening, is mostly human-caused, is a risk to human health, and that their offices and others should take action. We also evaluated which sociodemographic and risk perception factors related to these climate beliefs, risk perceptions, and workplace issue prioritization. Results Health professionals in Montana, a politically conservative state, demonstrated high levels of awareness that global warming is happening, human-caused, and a threat to human health, well above reported rates of public concern. Eighty-eight percent said that global warming is occurring and 69% that it is mostly anthropogenic. Sixty-nine percent said that their own health was already affected by climate, and 86% said they were already seeing at least one climate change-related event in their communities. Seventy-two percent said that their departments should be preparing to deal with climate change’s health effects, but just 30% said that it is currently happening. We found no statistically significant differences between Montana environmental health and public health professionals in regression models predicting climate beliefs, risk perception, and prioritization. As in studies of the public, political ideology and the observation of local climate-related changes were the strongest factors. Conclusions Montana environmental and public health officials said that departmental action was needed on climate change, indicating the readiness of rural health professionals to take action. Further studies of health professionals in rural regions are warranted.

Oral health diseases among the older people: a general health perspective

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Oral Health ◽  
Older People ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
General Health ◽  
Oral Health Care ◽  
Oral Diseases ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
The Relationship

Background: The relationship between oral health and general health is gaining interest in geriatric research; however, a lack of studies dealing with this issue from a general perspective makes it somewhat inaccessible to non-clinical public health professionals. Purpose: The purpose of this review is to describe the relationship between oral health and general health of the elderly on the basis of literature review, and to give non-clinical medical professionals and public health professionals an overview of this discipline. Methods: This study was based on an in-depth review of the literature pertaining to the relationship between oral health and general health among the older people. The tools commonly used to evaluate dental health and the academic researches of male elderly people were also reviewed. And future research directions were summarized. Results: Dental caries, periodontal disease, edentulism, and xerostomia are common oral diseases among the older people. Dental caries and periodontal diseases are the leading causes of missing teeth and edentulism. Xerostomia, similar to dry mouth, is another common oral health disease in the older people. No clear correlation exists between the subjective feeling of dryness and an objective decrease of saliva. Rather, both conditions can be explained by changes in saliva. The General Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI) and the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP) are the main assessment tools used to examine oral health and quality of life in the older people. The GOHAI tends to be more sensitive to objective values pertaining to oral function. In addition, oral health studies in male elderly people are population-based cohort or cross-sectional studies, involving masticatory function, oral prevention, frailty problems, cardiovascular disease risk, and cognitive status. Conclusion: It is possible to reduce the incidence of certain oral diseases, even among individuals who take oral health care seriously. Oral health care should be based on the viewpoint of comprehensive treatment, including adequate nutrition, good life and psychology, and correct oral health care methods. In the future, researchers could combine the results of meta-analysis with the clinical experience of doctors to provide a more in-depth and broader discussion on oral health research topics concerning the older people.

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