The state health department has started preparing state specific action plan for climate change and human health with emphasis on air pollution and heat wave as per the directions of the central government .
National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) under the Union ministry of health and family welfare has called for urgent intervention strategies to prevent the population from the harmful effects of climate change.
It has been told that health department has a significant role to reduce the morbidity and mortality due to direct or indirect effects of climate change and related environmental factors such as air pollution and heat wave.
According to Dr Ravi Prakash Sharma additional director (rural health), a governing body under the chairmanship of health minister will be formed along with a task force under the guidance of the principal secretary (health). Apart from engaging the health sector, the department will engage meteorology department, state pollution control board, state disaster management authority, departments related to environment, agriculture and food security, drinking water and sanitation. These departments will have defined roles and responsibilities.
Dr Sharma said the NCDC has asked to identify, assess and document potential risk of climate sensitive diseases such as extreme weather events affecting health; vector borne diseases; water and food borne diseases; cardio-respiratory illnesses and zoonotic diseases; others like renal diseases, nutritional deficiency disease etc; document morbidity, mortality and related statistics of these climate sensitive diseases with reference to change in recent years and risk mapping to identify the “hot spots” for vulnerable population with respect to health infrastructure and other resources.
{{/usCountry}}Dr Sharma said the NCDC has asked to identify, assess and document potential risk of climate sensitive diseases such as extreme weather events affecting health; vector borne diseases; water and food borne diseases; cardio-respiratory illnesses and zoonotic diseases; others like renal diseases, nutritional deficiency disease etc; document morbidity, mortality and related statistics of these climate sensitive diseases with reference to change in recent years and risk mapping to identify the “hot spots” for vulnerable population with respect to health infrastructure and other resources.
{{/usCountry}}The state health department has been asked to identify four/ five sentinel hospitals (public/ private) from different cities where daily footfall in emergencies are high and caters to population of all age groups and socio economic status, in large cities in the state.