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Arnagretta Hunter, physician and cardiologist, discusses the effects of climate change on human health.

Image courtesy of interviewee. September 19, 2024

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This video video explores the significant impact of extreme weather events, driven by climate change, on public health. The speaker emphasizes that as more people are affected by natural disasters such as heatwaves, floods, and bushfires, there is an urgent need to understand how these environmental changes correlate with health outcomes. While there is extensive population-level data linking environmental factors to health, a shift is needed toward recognizing these connections on an individual basis.

Using examples like the bushfires in Australia, which exposed millions to harmful air pollution, the speaker discusses how specific environmental pollutants, like PM 2.5, contribute to a range of health issues including cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. They argue for a paradigm shift in healthcare that acknowledges the environment as a critical determinant of health, alongside social and biological factors.

The call to action includes increasing awareness across government sectors and the healthcare industry about the relationship between environmental conditions and health outcomes. The speaker believes that by improving the understanding of this relationship, they can enhance health strategies and community resilience to climate-related health risks, ultimately helping to mitigate morbidity and mortality associated with extreme weather events. The importance of integrating environmental considerations into public health policy and practices is highlighted as crucial for improving individual and community well-being.

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Here are five key points extracted from the video:

1. **Impact of Extreme Weather on Health**: The video discusses how extreme weather events are increasingly affecting large populations globally, leading to health concerns such as excess mortality associated with various environmental factors, including heat waves, smoke exposure from bushfires, and cold weather.

2. **Epidemiological Insights**: It highlights that robust epidemiological data exists, demonstrating associations between environmental variables and the health outcomes of communities. However, there is a noted disparity in how this information is applied at the individual level within healthcare systems, which often focus more on personal risk factors than broader environmental influences.

3. **Shifts in Healthcare Perspectives**: The speaker emphasizes a paradigm shift in healthcare thinking—moving from solely understanding individual health impacts to considering environmental factors and collective community health in the convideo of climate change. This shift is essential for recognizing how climate change directly affects individual health and healthcare services.

4. **Climate Change as a Health Driver**: The need for urgent action on climate change is framed as a critical public health concern. By acknowledging climate change as a reality that has tangible effects on individual and population health, the video argues that all areas of government should integrate health information into their policy decisions.

5. **Fundamental Needs for Health**: The speaker reiterates the fundamental requirements for survival—clean air, food, and water—asserting their importance for maintaining health and wellbeing. This underscores the necessity of preserving the environment in order to protect public health, emphasizing that environmental health is intrinsically linked to overall health outcomes.

These points collectively stress the interconnectedness of environmental conditions, public health, and the urgency of addressing climate change.

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Here are some key quotes extracted from the video, which focuses on the impact of extreme weather and climate change on public health:

1. **Impact of Extreme Weather**:
- "As extreme weather events impact on larger proportions of the population around the world."
- "We know that it will have an impact and it has an excess mortality associated with it."

2. **Epidemiological Insights**:
- "We know quite a lot of information about that from epidemiology, from looking at population studies and then making associations between environmental variables and the health and wellbeing of communities."
- "We certainly have quite a lot of robust information on a population basis around the world."

3. **Health Risks due to Environmental Factors**:
- "PM 2.5 as an air pollutant can be problematic and causes a wide range of health conditions from cardiovascular disease to respiratory disease to malignancies and cancers."
- "Your heart attack, your stroke, your infection, your hospital admission... has the imprint of the environment very strongly."

4. **Climate Change as a Health Challenge**:
- "The interesting thing is that we're seeing the environment around us impacting extraordinary examples like the black summer experience we had here in Australia in 2019 and 2020."
- "Climate change is not a theoretical problem... but as the climate changes, it has a profound impact on human health and wellbeing."

5. **Call to Action**:
- "One of the strongest reasons to act on climate change is because of the health impacts of the change in climate."
- "We really have an opportunity to work with communities in that climate change adaptation space of decreasing morbidity and mortality associated with the rise in increasing extreme weather events."

6. **Holistic Approach to Health**:
- "The social environment in which we find ourselves is a really important modulating factor, but then broader appreciation that the environment is a key and essential component."
- "We need air to breathe, we need food to eat, and we need water with which we survive."

7. **Shifting Dynamics**:
- "I think we can still do more... we are seeing in our communities the benefits of doing so and the risks if we don't appreciate that relationship between people and place."
- "It's a paradigm shift within healthcare... moving from the bio-psychosocial model... to a broader perspective."

These quotes encapsulate the central themes of the video, highlighting the connections between extreme weather, climate change, public health, and the need for a comprehensive, community-based approach to mitigate health risks associated with environmental factors.

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Here are some articles that explore themes similar to those in your video about the impact of extreme weather events driven by climate change on public health:

1. **"Climate Change and Health: Impacts, Vulnerabilities, and Adaptation"**
- This article discusses how climate change affects health outcomes and emphasizes the need for public health systems to adapt to these changing environmental conditions. It examines various extreme weather events and their direct and indirect effects on community health.

2. **"The Health Impacts of Climate Change: A Primer for Health Professionals"**
- A comprehensive overview of how climate change influences health, focusing on specific weather-related phenomena (e.g., heatwaves, flooding) and their implications for health systems. This article also highlights the importance of health professionals understanding this linkage.

3. **"Air Quality and Health: The Impact of Wildfires"**
- This article delves into the health effects of air pollution from wildfires, drawing on recent case studies such as those in Australia and the United States. It discusses how particulate matter, like PM 2.5, affects respiratory and cardiovascular health.

4. **"Understanding the Role of Environment in Public Health: A Call for Action"**
- This piece emphasizes the need for public health initiatives to integrate environmental health into their core strategies. It highlights the interplay between environmental conditions and health outcomes, advocating for policy changes.

5. **"Climate Change, Public Health, and Environmental Justice"**
- Focusing on the intersections of climate change and social determinants of health, this article discusses how marginalized communities are disproportionately affected by extreme weather events and outlines strategies for equitable health outcomes.

6. **"Building Resilient Health Systems in the Face of Climate Change"**
- This article explores strategies to enhance the resilience of healthcare systems in dealing with climate-related health risks. It advocates for a proactive approach, integrating environmental considerations into health policies.

7. **"The Impact of Extreme Weather on Mental Health: Understanding the Connections"**
- This article examines the psychological impacts of extreme weather events and natural disasters, advocating for better mental health resources as part of disaster response strategies.

These articles can provide further insight into the relationship between climate change, extreme weather events, and public health, similar to the themes presented in your original video.

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As extreme weather events impact on larger proportions

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of the population around the world.

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Lots of us having been through heat waves or bush fires

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or smoke exposure or floods

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or extreme cold weather might be really wondering.

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I wonder how much this impacts on the health

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of the communities around it.

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So we know quite a lot of information about

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that from epidemiology, from looking at population studies

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and then making associations between environmental variables

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and the health and wellbeing of communities.

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And so we certainly have quite a lot

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of robust information on a population

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basis around the world.

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The interesting thing is that we look at so much

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of this data from a population perspective.

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We're looking at it, you know, across this several thousands

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or millions of people across a particular territory.

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Uh, we know that it will have an impact

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and it has an excess mortality associated with it.

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When we look at the individual, which is much how much

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of our healthcare system works, we look at an individual

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and their risk factors,

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or we look at their particular, likelihood

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of contracting a disease or succumbing to a disease process.

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We are much less robust in terms

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of our environmental variables

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and the way that we apply those.

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And again, I think this is part of the thinking

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that we're seeing shift around the world

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as the extreme weather events take place.

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And we're seeing the environment

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around us impacting extraordinary examples like

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that would be things like the black summer experience we had

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here in Australia in 2019

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and 2020 where the bushfire smoke exposure, lasted

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for many months from the, the beginning of spring of 2019

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through to the end of summer of 2020.

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And in know Australia, whose population is

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around 27 million, it's about 12

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and a half million Australians were exposed

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to PM 2.5 air pollution from bushfire

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smoke, which is unusual.

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And so we, again, we're learning these populations specific,

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we know that PM 2.5 as an air pollutant can be problematic

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and causes a wide range

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of health conditions from cardiovascular disease

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to respiratory disease to malignancies and cancers.

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And then on an individual basis, can we reverse that?

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Can we look at one person in hospital

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and say, look, your heart attack, your stroke,

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your infection, your hospital admission, it has the imprint

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of the environment very strongly.

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Um, and if it wasn't for the unfolding apocalypse

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of the bushfire smoke outside in 2020,

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you would not be in hospital.

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And so beginning that population,

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taking the population discussion down to the individual,

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that that's been the dynamic shift,

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I think in the last few

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years around the world.

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We're seeing this increase in extreme weather events.

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We know that that will impact on the health

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and wellbeing of all populations.

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And there, there are, there's no part

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of the world which won't be experiencing changes in patterns

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of disease, changes in patterns of illness

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and mortality in response

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to changes in weather environments.

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And so for some places,

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if you're in a more temperate than usual winter,

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that may in fact improve

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Mortality. We know very cold

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temperatures are strongly associated

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with increase in mortality.

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Um, but in contrast,

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very hot temperatures are also associated

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with a much higher mortality.

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So the op, by making these, the shift from the population,

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understanding into what's,

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what's happening in your health service,

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what's happening in primary care,

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what's happening in the preventative space,

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we really have an opportunity to work with communities in

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that climate change adaptation space of decreasing morbidity

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and mortality associated

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with the rise in increasing extreme weather events,

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the increase in severity and ex

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and frequency of these sorts of events.

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Uh, look, I think it's across the board

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and I often wonder if we're,

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when we're talking about climate change,

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and the need to act on climate change,

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I often wonder is there a stronger driver than,

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than caring for people in place?

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Um, and for me, it certainly informs the way

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that I approach the, the science

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and my understanding of climate change.

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Um, that climate change.

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It's not a theoretical problem that will occur

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outside the insulated box in which I find myself,

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but as the climate changes,

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it has a profound impact on human health

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and wellbeing from the individual

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to the community into the global population more broadly.

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So I think it's one of the strongest reasons

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to act on climate change is

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because of the health impacts of the change in climate.

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And so who should take the health information seriously?

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I think it's across all areas of government.

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It can be be from, from treasury through transportation,

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through public policy, through education.

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But in the healthcare sector, making these links

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between environmental variables

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and the health outcomes of our populations has such

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a lot going for it.

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It really gives us an opportunity.

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Most of us practice medicine or work in healthcare

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because we are trying to improve the quality of life

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and life expectancy for the people that we care for.

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And, and so understanding

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that the environment is such an important layer of health

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and wellbeing on an individual

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and a community basis, I think is, is powerful in informing,

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the opportunities that we have to, to care

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for people and protect their health.

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When I compare the understanding of environmental variables

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or the, the literacy in the healthcare sector

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around climate change

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and its health impacts, just in the last five years, the,

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the change in understanding and the awareness

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and engagement I think has been,

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has been shifting quite quickly.

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Is it fast enough? Is, is anything fast enough?

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Have we changed global greenhouse gas pollution?

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We really haven't in the last five years.

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Are we doing enough, fast enough?

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We're probably not, we are almost certainly locked into a

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significant shift in global climate.

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And so should that be informing a, a faster understanding

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that people in place are deeply connected

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and the way in which we care

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for the planet will is hugely impact

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on our health and wellbeing.

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I, I think we can still do more.

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So I've been, been really impressed, you know,

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particularly I guess in medicine,

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but certainly across the healthcare sector more broadly.

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It tends to be a slowly responsive system at times.

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But we probably learned through the Coronavirus pandemic

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and also through the sorts of extreme weather events

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that have taken place in Europe, in North America,

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around the world through Asia.

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Uh, and here obviously in

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Australia, we are learning to make those associations

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and we are seeing in our communities the benefits of doing

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so and the risks if we don't appreciate that relationship

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between people and place.

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I would put this across the board in their healthcare

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sector, and I'm speaking dominantly as a cardiologist

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and physician who works looking after people.

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Um, and it's, I I've talked about a paradigm shift within

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healthcare of moving from the bio-psychosocial model

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where we understand the biology of disease drives.

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So much of what we deal with

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that the social envi determinants of health,

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the social environment in which we find ourselves is a

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really important modulating factor

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and cau causative issue sometimes for disease,

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but then broader appreciation that the environment is a key

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and essential component.

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And, and for me, I take it back

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to fairly rudimentary basics for human condition.

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We need air to breathe, we need food to eat,

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and we need water with which we survive.

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Uh, these three environmental variables

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provided for us by the planet are totally essential

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to human health and wellbeing.

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And without access to good quality products across air,

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food, and water, our health

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and wellbeing will not be maintained.

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So really making that strong link between people

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and the environment in which we find ourselves, I,

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I don't think we can do that fast enough.

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And I do think it's a paradigm shift.

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And so it's really beginning to appreciate

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that the biological metrics, the reductive model of medicine

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that has been dominant through our discussions over many

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decades needs to shift into a broader perspective.

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It's a more complex framework.

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It's more difficult in terms of the epidemiology

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and finding the p value in a particular study,

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but that richness really adds to the appreciation

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and the work that we do.

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And it gives us, I think, an a hugely increased capacity

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to preserve and protect, to maintain health

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and wellbeing across our populations

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and for people, in their lives.

"The Crucial Connection Between Extreme Weather Events and Community Health: A Call to Action on Climate Change"**

00:00:03 - As extreme weather events impact on larger proportions of the population around the world. Lots of us having been through heat waves or bush fires or smoke exposure or floods or extreme cold weather might be really wondering. I wonder how much this impacts on the health of the communities around it. So we know quite a lot of information about that from epidemiology, from looking at population studies and then making associations between environmental variables and the health and wellbeing of communities. And so we certainly have quite a lot of robust information on a population basis around the world. The interesting thing is that we look at so much of this data from a population perspective. We're looking at it, you know, across this several thousands or millions of people across a particular territory.
00:00:47 - and it has an excess mortality associated with it. When we look at the individual, which is much how much of our healthcare system works, we look at an individual and their risk factors, or we look at their particular, likelihood of contracting a disease or succumbing to a disease process. We are much less robust in terms of our environmental variables and the way that we apply those. And again, I think this is part of the thinking that we're seeing shift around the world as the extreme weather events take place. And we're seeing the environment around us impacting extraordinary examples like that would be things like the black summer experience we had here in Australia in 2019 and 2020 where the bushfire smoke exposure, lasted
00:01:32 - through to the end of summer of 2020. And in know Australia, whose population is around 27 million, it's about 12 and a half million Australians were exposed to PM 2.5 air pollution from bushfire smoke, which is unusual. And so we, again, we're learning these populations specific, we know that PM 2.5 as an air pollutant can be problematic and causes a wide range of health conditions from cardiovascular disease to respiratory disease to malignancies and cancers. And then on an individual basis, can we reverse that? Can we look at one person in hospital and say, look, your heart attack, your stroke,
00:02:13 - of the environment very strongly. and if it wasn't for the unfolding apocalypse of the bushfire smoke outside in 2020, you would not be in hospital. And so beginning that population, taking the population discussion down to the individual, that that's been the dynamic shift, I think in the last few years around the world. We're seeing this increase in extreme weather events. We know that that will impact on the health and wellbeing of all populations. And there, there are, there's no part of the world which won't be experiencing changes in patterns of disease, changes in patterns of illness and mortality in response
00:02:53 - And so for some places, if you're in a more temperate than usual winter, that may in fact improve Mortality. We know very cold temperatures are strongly associated with increase in mortality. but in contrast, very hot temperatures are also associated with a much higher mortality. So the op, by making these, the shift from the population, understanding into what's, what's happening in your health service, what's happening in primary care, what's happening in the preventative space, we really have an opportunity to work with communities in that climate change adaptation space of decreasing morbidity and mortality associated with the rise in increasing extreme weather events,
00:03:32 - and frequency of these sorts of events. look, I think it's across the board and I often wonder if we're, when we're talking about climate change, and the need to act on climate change, I often wonder is there a stronger driver than, than caring for people in place? and for me, it certainly informs the way that I approach the, the science and my understanding of climate change. that climate change. It's not a theoretical problem that will occur outside the insulated box in which I find myself, but as the climate changes, it has a profound impact on human health and wellbeing from the individual to the community into the global population more broadly. So I think it's one of the strongest reasons to act on climate change is because of the health impacts of the change in climate.

"Integrating Environmental Considerations into Healthcare: A Paradigm Shift for Health and Wellbeing"

00:04:16 - I think it's across all areas of government. It can be be from, from treasury through transportation, through public policy, through education. But in the healthcare sector, making these links between environmental variables and the health outcomes of our populations has such a lot going for it. It really gives us an opportunity. Most of us practice medicine or work in healthcare because we are trying to improve the quality of life and life expectancy for the people that we care for. And, and so understanding that the environment is such an important layer of health and wellbeing on an individual and a community basis, I think is, is powerful in informing, the opportunities that we have to, to care
00:04:55 - When I compare the understanding of environmental variables or the, the literacy in the healthcare sector around climate change and its health impacts, just in the last five years, the, the change in understanding and the awareness and engagement I think has been, has been shifting quite quickly. Is it fast enough? Is, is anything fast enough? Have we changed global greenhouse gas pollution? We really haven't in the last five years. Are we doing enough, fast enough? We're probably not, we are almost certainly locked into a significant shift in global climate. And so should that be informing a, a faster understanding that people in place are deeply connected and the way in which we care for the planet will is hugely impact on our health and wellbeing.
00:05:36 - So I've been, been really impressed, you know, particularly I guess in medicine, but certainly across the healthcare sector more broadly. It tends to be a slowly responsive system at times. But we probably learned through the Coronavirus pandemic and also through the sorts of extreme weather events that have taken place in Europe, in North America, around the world through Asia. and here obviously in Australia, we are learning to make those associations and we are seeing in our communities the benefits of doing so and the risks if we don't appreciate that relationship between people and place. I would put this across the board in their healthcare sector, and I'm speaking dominantly as a cardiologist and physician who works looking after people.
00:06:20 - healthcare of moving from the bio-psychosocial model where we understand the biology of disease drives. So much of what we deal with that the social envi determinants of health, the social environment in which we find ourselves is a really important modulating factor and cau causative issue sometimes for disease, but then broader appreciation that the environment is a key and essential component. And, and for me, I take it back to fairly rudimentary basics for human condition. We need air to breathe, we need food to eat, and we need water with which we survive. these three environmental variables provided for us by the planet are totally essential
00:06:59 - And without access to good quality products across air, food, and water, our health and wellbeing will not be maintained. So really making that strong link between people and the environment in which we find ourselves, I, I don't think we can do that fast enough. And I do think it's a paradigm shift. And so it's really beginning to appreciate that the biological metrics, the reductive model of medicine that has been dominant through our discussions over many decades needs to shift into a broader perspective. It's a more complex framework. It's more difficult in terms of the epidemiology and finding the p value in a particular study, but that richness really adds to the appreciation and the work that we do.
00:07:45 - to preserve and protect, to maintain health and wellbeing across our populations and for people, in their lives.

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