National Programme on Climate Change and Human Health-India, 2019

  • Akshay Kumar National Centre for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi, India.
  • Nitin P Mahajan National Centre for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi, India.
  • Rameshwar Sorokhaibam National Centre for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi, India.
  • Avinash Sunthlia National Centre for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi, India.
  • Binoy Surendra Babu National Centre for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi, India.
  • Shikha Vardhan National Centre for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi, India.
  • Aakash Shrivastava National Centre for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5293-4268
Keywords: Climate Change and Health, ARI, Indian Public Health Service (IPHS) guidelines, Surveillance, Climate Resilient Healthcare Facilities

Abstract

Introduction: In 2015, India’s response to climate change was broadened by introducing four new missions including “Healthâ€. National Action Plan for Climate Change and Human Health (NAPCCHH) was prepared in 2018 with objective to strengthen health care services against adverse impact of climate change on health. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) approved National Programme on Climate Change and Human Health (NPCCHH) under National Health Mission (NHM) in February 2019. The common Climate Sensitive Diseases (CSDs) are - air pollution related, heat related, water-borne, vector-borne, cardiopulmonary diseases, mental health, food-borne, nutrition related illnesses etc. Currently the three key areas of focus for NPCCHH include air pollution, heat related illnesses and creation of green and climate resilient healthcare facilities.

Air Pollution and Human Health: Acute Respiratory Illnesses (ARI) surveillance in context of air pollution was started in year 2017 in Delhi. Key Strategy in coming years are to expand ARI surveillance in all polluted cities of States, developing State/District/Cities level health sector adaptation plan for air pollution and health.

Heat and Human Health: Since 2015, heat related illnesses (HRI) surveillance was started from heat vulnerable States of India. Key Strategies in coming year are strengthening the surveillance, standardizing the investigation of deaths due to suspected heat stroke cases, developing State/ District/ City specific heat and health action plan, increasing public awareness and community outreach, developing measures for early warning system/ alerts and response at State, district and below district level.

National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) under MoHFW is incorporating both the green and climate resilient healthcare principles in revising Indian Public Health Service Guidelines.

How to cite this article:
Kumar A, Mahajan NP, Sorokhaibam R, Sunthlia A, Babu BS, Vardhan S et al. National Programme on Climate Change and Human Health-India, 2019. J Commun Dis 2020; 52(3): 43-48.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24321/0019.5138.202029

References

United Nations. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change 1992. Available online: https://

unfccc.int/files/essential_background/background_publications_htmlpdf/application/pdf/conveng.pdf.

Accessed on 30 March 2020.

Edenhofer O, Pichs-Madruga O, Sokona Y et al. IPCC, 2014: Summary for policymakers. In: Climate change

: Mitigation of climate change. Contribution of working group III to the fifth assessment report of

Intergovernmental Panel on climate change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New

York, NY, USA. Available from: https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/02/ipcc_wg3_ar5_summary-forpolicymakers. pdf. Accessed on 30 March 2020.

Masson-Delmotte V, Zhai P, Pörtner HO et al. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Summary for Policymakers. In Global Warming of 1.5 C; An IPCC Special Report on the impacts of global

warming of 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, in

the context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development,

and efforts to eradicate poverty. World Meteorological Organization: Geneva, Switzerland 2018;32. Available

from: https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/chapter/summary-forpolicy-makers/. Accessed on 12 March 2019.

Woodward KRA, Campbell-Lendrum D, Chadee DD, et al. Human health: impacts, adaptation, and

co-benefits. In: Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Part A: Global and

Sectoral Aspects. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental

Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA

, pp.709-754. Available from: https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/02/WGIIAR5-Chap11_FINAL.pdf. Accessed on 30 March 2020.

Pandve HT. India’s national action plan on climate change. Indian J Occup Environ Med 2009; 13(1): 17-9.

Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2822162/. Accessed on 30 March 2020.

Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India. National action plan for climate change &

human health. Available online: https://ncdc.gov.in/WriteReadData/l892s/27505481411548674558.pdf.

Accessed on 29 January 2020.

IQAir Air Visual. 2019 World air quality report. Available from: https://www.iqair.com/world-most-pollutedcities/world-air-quality-report-2019-en.pdf. Accessed on 30 March 2020.

Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. Government launches National Clean Air Programme

(NCAP). Available from http://pib.nic.in/newsite/mbErel.aspx?relid=175437. Accessed on 10 February

WHO. Ambient (Outdoor) Air Quality and Health. Available from: https://www.who.int/news-room/

fact-sheets/detail/ambient-(outdoor)-air-quality-andhealth.Accessed on 30 March 2020.

India State-Level Disease Burden Initiative Air Pollution Collaborators. The impact of air pollution on deaths,

disease burden and life expectancy across the states of India: the global burden of disease study 2017. Lancet

Planet Health 2019; 3: e26-39. Available from: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-

(18)30261-4/fulltext. Accessed on 30 March 2020.

World Meteorological Organization. WMO statement on the State of the global climate in 2018. Available online: https://library.wmo.int/doc_num.php?explnum_id=5789. Accessed on 10 February 2020.

India Meteorological Department. Statement on climate of India during 2019. Available from: https://

mausam.imd.gov.in/backend/assets/press_release_pdf/Statement_on_Climate_of_India_during_2019.

pdf. Accessed on 10 February 2020.

National Disaster Management Authority. National Guidelines for preparation of action plan – prevention

and management of heat wave October 2019. Available from: https://ndma.gov.in/images/guidelines/heatwav

eguidelines.pdf. Accessed on 10 Feb 2020.

MoHFW. Guidelines on prevention and management of heat related illnesses 2015. Available from: http://

health.bih.nic.in/Operational%20guideline/EMR%20Mohfw%20heat%20illnesses%20-2015.pdf. Accessed

on 10 February 2020.

Malik A, Lenzen M, McAlister S et al. The carbon footprint of Australian health care. Lancet Planet Health

; 2: e27-35. Available from: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-51961730180-8/

fulltext. Accessed on 30 March 2020.

Pichler PP, Jaccard IS, Weisz U et al. International comparison of health care carbon footprints. Environ

Res Lett. 2019; 14: 064004. Available from https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ab19e1.

Accessed on 15 April 2020.

Bell JE, Brown CL, Conlon K et al. Changes in extreme events and the potential impacts on human health. J

Air Waste Manage 2018; 69: 265-87. Available from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1096

2017.1401017. Accessed on 15 April 2020.

Curtis S, Fair A, Wistow J et al. Impact of extreme weather events and climate change for health and

social care systems. Environ Health 2017; 16: 128. Available from: https://ehjournal.biomedcentral.com/

articles/10.1186/s12940-017-0324-3. Accessed on 15 April 2020.

Chias P, Abad T. Green hospitals, green healthcare. Int J of Energy Prod & Mgmt 2017; 2: 196-205.

Available from: https://www.witpress.com/elibrary/eq-volumes/2/2/1860. Accessed on 15 April 2020.

Dhillon VS, Kaur D. Green hospital and climate change: their interrelationship and the way forward. J Clin

Diagn Res. 2015; 9(12): LE01-5. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26814377. Accessed

on 15 April 2020.

Balbus J, Berry P, Brettle M et al. Enhancing the sustainability and climate resiliency of health care

facilities: a comparison of initiatives and toolkits. Rev Panam Salud Publica. 2016; 40(3): 174-80.

Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27991975. Accessed on 15 April 2020.

Published
2020-10-01