Healthcare professionals are important communicators for addressing climate change

An article published in the Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health notes that medical and healthcare professionals are in a unique position to speak to patients and the broader community about the impact of climate change on health and wellbeing.The authors provide several recommendations for communicating climate change, noting that simple messages, repeated often, by trusted voices, are most effective. 

“As recent bushfires, heatwaves, and extreme weather events in Australia and internationally have highlighted, the immediate threats to the health of communities and healthcare systems are immense,” said co-author Lai Heng Foong, MBBS, FACEM, MHS, of Bankstown Lidcombe Hospital and the University of NSW and University of Western Sydney, in Australia. “The situation is increasingly urgent. We need to act now, before tipping points are reached and the way we live our lives will be irreversibly changed. We also need to ensure that the legacy we leave behind for our children is one where they can thrive.” 

Climate Week NYC takes place September 20–26, 2021.