Health4all : Health Care Workers Grapple with Climate Change

Health4all

Every year more Alaskan families lose health insurance and can't afford health care. Every year more families with health insurance cannot afford to use it because of expensive out-of-pocket charges. Every year more Alaskan elders with Medicare are refused treatment by local physicians. And every year health care in Alaska continues to cost 30 percent more than down south. These problems are a reflection of the crisis across the nation. Not surprisingly, the United States ranks last in preventable deaths compared to 14 Western European nations. We have a lot to talk about.

Lawrence D. Weiss retired from UAA in 2004 as a research professor in public health. He designed and built the Master of Public Health program at UAA, and has published three books and numerous articles on public health and health policy issues. He completed a post-doctoral degree at Harvard School of Public Health in 1982, and has been in Alaska ever since. His favorite expression is "facts matter." Occasionally he can be found in a local pub drinking beer and eating pizza while engaged in passionate conversation with friends.

Health Care Workers Grapple with Climate Change

Posted by health4all

Posted: March 13, 2009 - 2:42 pm

The topic of the latest fall/winter issue of Northwest Public Health, now available online, is "Climate Change: Challenging Public Health". A series of articles address how public health workers plan to prepare and adapt to the challenges of climate change. Climate model predictions for the Northwest indicate that health workers will face a wide range of health problems, including complications related to extreme weather and more outbreaks of infectious diseases.

At least one article deals with Alaska specific challenges. Joining Forces to Address Climate Change: Alaska Communities Threatened by Coastal Erosion and Flooding by Jaquline H. Poston and Larry Hartig reports on a collaborative effort to support tribal elders struggling with the survival of native villages. Other subjects include:

climate change and the 10 Essential Services of Public Health
public health's role in the built environment
how global health education and climate change
disaster preparedness for small health-care providers
climate change and communicable diseases
models for climate change and air quality
health effects of wildfires
deaths associated with natural events
how environmental health can address climate change
interagency cooperation during and after floods

Northwest Public Health is a biannual journal for public health practitioners, academicians, policy makers and others interested in creating the conditions that keep the public healthy. It's mission is to promote the discussion of public health issues, ideas, and innovations in the Pacific Northwest. It is published biannually in spring and fall. Print copies of the journal are available on request.

posted by K.L., ACPP Coordinator