TN Launches 'One Health and Climate Hub' to tackle health impacts of climate change

Chennai: In response to the interconnected healthcare challenges affecting human, animal, and environmental health due to climate change, the Tamil Nadu government is set to establish a 'One Health and Climate Hub' under the Department of Health and Family Welfare to tackle these issues.

The One Health and Climate Hub will be chaired by the Additional Chief Secretary of the Health and Family Welfare Department. This initiative reflects the state's commitment to address the complex and interconnected challenges of climate change by conducting comprehensive studies to map health risks and diseases exacerbated by climate change. Additionally, the hub will focus on developing predictive models using artificial intelligence (AI) to assess future disease trends based on climate scenarios.

Also Read: Climate change linked to increased risk of cardiovascular disease: JAMA Study

As per the recent media report by The Hindu, the World Health Organization defines the ‘One Health’ approach as an integrated and unifying framework that aims to balance and optimize the health of people, animals, and ecosystems. Recognizing the growing threats posed by zoonotic diseases, vector-borne illnesses, antimicrobial resistance, biodiversity loss, and climate change, ‘One Health’ emphasizes collaborative efforts across sectors such as public health, veterinary medicine, and environmental sciences, a press release said.

Following climate change, Tamil Nadu faces a range of challenges, including rising temperatures, zoonotic outbreaks, vector-borne diseases, coastal vulnerabilities, and biodiversity loss. These issues demand an integrated and proactive approach to safeguard the health of communities, especially vulnerable populations such as those in tribal, coastal, and high-risk areas.

The One Health and Climate Hub will focus on creating integrated strategies to address these challenges. The key activities proposed in the hub are:

-The hub will formulate comprehensive policies and action plans to mitigate the health risks posed by climate change, particularly in vulnerable communities. It will also work on establishing robust statewide surveillance and data systems to monitor climate-sensitive diseases and develop early warning mechanisms.

-The hub will strengthen data management and organize training programs/workshops on 'One Health' for healthcare workers, veterinarians, and environmental experts. It will also foster coordination between departments such as health, animal husbandry, environment and forests, and disaster management to ensure effective implementation of these initiatives.

-As part of this initiative, the Tamil Nadu Government will also retrofit hospitals with climate-resilient measures, such as solar panels and energy-efficient systems, to build a green healthcare infrastructure. Additionally, the government will collaborate with expert agencies to create frameworks for addressing the challenges of antimicrobial resistance.

The hub will collaborate with healthcare experts, research institutions, and epidemiologists to analyze historical data on disease outbreaks and correlate them with climate events. It will create and update a State-level database to track climate-sensitive diseases.

Also Read: Air pollution linked to a decrease in IVF birth rate success, new study shows