Policy makers have been urged to consider incorporating mental health interventions into the climate change and pandemic preparedness and response strategies.
According to experts, effects of climate change undermines many social determinants of good health such as livelihood, equality and access to healthcare and support structures which have negative impact on overall community’s wellbeing.
They also observed that climate sensitive health risks disproportionately affect and felt by the most vulnerable and disadvantaged including women, children, ethnic minorities, poor communities, migrants, displaced persons, older populations and those with underlying health conditions therefore affecting their mental health wellbeing.
According to Dr Pamela Kaithuru, Kenya metrological department, people’s mental health can be directly affected due to climate change related stressors such as natural disasters, displacement, loss of live hoods and community disruptions and pandemic related stressors such as social isolations, economic uncertainty and fear of illnesses.
“Climate change can increase the frequency and severity of pandemics due to ecosystems disruptions, increased displacements and forced migration due to extreme weather events,” she said adding that it can also “escalate food and water insecurity leading to malnutrition and other illnesses, spread of vector borne diseases such as malaria, dengue and increased heatwaves and heat related illnesses which can have negative mental health impact to individuals thereby causing increased rates of anxiety, depressions, PTSD and substance abuse.”
Dr Kaithuru was speaking at health civil society organization (CSOs) monthly meeting and media round-table on Pandemic preparedness and response, co-hosted by Stop TB partnership Kenya and Health NGOs network (Hennet).
She urged Government to integrate climate change adaptation and mitigation into health programs and strengthen health system’s by incorporating mental health into climate and pandemic responses strategies.
Kaithuru explained the intersection between climate change and health outcomes saying that effects such as prolonged droughts increase poverty levels which may force communities to engage in risky sexual behaviors for survival, increased incidences of sexual and gender-based violence, rape and other humanitarian situations which contributes to HIV vulnerabilities in the society.
She stated: “Climate change can also have negative impact on HIV preventions and treatments by causing disruptions of healthcare services and supply chains and increase risk of food insecurity which impacts medication adherences therefore affecting mental wellbeing of those affected.”
She called for cross sector collaboration and partnerships between government, Civil society organizations (CSOs) and private sector for comprehensive health strategies to address climate change impacts.
Kaithuru also urged stakeholders to embrace community based approaches and engagements of local communities in planning and decision making processes and enhancing local adaptive capacities through education and resource allocations.
Dr Kaithuru said that global warming of 1.5C and 2C will be exceeded during the 21st century unless deep reductions in CO2 and other greenhouse gases emission occur in the coming decades.
She added: “It is possible with strong political will to increase investment, using existing technology to limit increase in global mean temperature to two degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial levels aiming at 1.5 degree Celsius but this require urgent and ambitious collective action.”
She explained that global warming coupled by negative effects of climate change will lead to frequency and intensity of hot extremes, marine heatwaves, heavy precipitation and in some regions agricultural and ecological droughts, an increase in the proportion of intense tropical cyclones and reductions in arctic sea ice, snow cover and permafrost.
“It is equivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land widespread and rapid changes in the atmosphere, ocean, cryosphere and biosphere have occurred,” she said.
Global warming is causing long lasting changes to our climate system, which threatens irreversible consequences if we do not act, she said adding that, “we should integrate disaster risk measures, sustainable natural resource management, and human security into national development strategy.”
