♦ 3rd Annual BCCPH Meeting Announcement
♦ Action Teams Now Recruiting
♦ Highlights from the Global Climate and Health Forum
♦ Project Spotlight
♦ Maricopa County Environmental Heat Statistics
♦ Upcoming Climate and Health Events
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On November 9th, 2018, the Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) will host the 3rd Annual Bridging Climate Change and Public Health Meeting as well as the 2nd Arizona Environmental Tracking Program Technical Advisory Group Meeting. This event will be an opportunity for stakeholders to meet face-to-face and work with the action teams addressing the five strategic directions identified at last year's meeting.
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The meeting will take place at Desert Willow Conference Center and both breakfast and lunch are complimentary for all attendees. Please follow the link below for more information about the event or to register as an attendee.
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Action Teams Now Recruiting
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Action Teams are currently developing innovative strategies to address climate and health hazards in Maricopa County. Each Action Team is focused on addressing one of the strategic directions outlined in the Maricopa County Climate and Health Strategic Plan. All teams are actively recruiting new members. Click the button below to contact the Climate and Health team at MCDPH to learn more or to join an Action Team.
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Coordinating Research and Collaborative Efforts to Catalyze Change
Providing the opportunity to link research and practice to ensure that results are applicable and meaningful.
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Fostering Environmental Action for a Healthier Community
Promotes individual and organizational movement towards implementing mitigation and adaptation efforts.
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Promoting Community Awareness and Public Education about Climate and Health
Providing resources for education in the private and public sector which are supported by current science.
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Building Community Awareness through a Strategic and Targeted Communication Plan
Supporting reasonable and unified climate change and health messages.
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Celebrating Success and Champions
An opportunity to raise awareness of current climate and health-related activities and successes across our community.
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Highlights from the Global Climate and Health Forum
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Lloyd Dean, the CEO of Dignity Health was one of several speakers at the forum.
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Panelists discussed the importance of taking immediate action to mitigate the effects of climate hazards on health.
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On September 12, dozens of leading health organizations representing more than five million doctors, nurses, and public health professionals, and 17,000 hospitals in more than 120 countries, announced commitments and unveiled a Call to Action on Climate and Health aimed at accelerating stronger advocacy and action in addressing climate change—the greatest health threat of the 21st century. The commitments were made as part of the Global Climate and Health Forum at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), an affiliate event to the Global Climate Action Summit.
Highlights from the discussion include integrating health sector perspectives in climate policy and advocating the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the health sector. Representatives from both the City of Phoenix and the Maricopa County Department of Public Health were able to attend the event in person. The forum was organized by the Global Climate and Health Alliance, the Global Health Group at UCSF's Institute for Global Health Sciences, Health Care Without Harm, and the US Climate and Health Alliance.
Click here to learn more about the forum and its sponsors.
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Arizona Environmental Public Health Tracking
The Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) is a CDC Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) Network Grantee. As a grantee, ADHS maintains an interactive GIS website to help Arizonans learn about environmental hazards in the state that could impact their health. EPHT has gathered data from national and local sources in order to view both environmental and health outcome data in one easily accessible place.
Visit
azdhs.gov/epht
to learn more.
Locally, Arizona's Tracking Program has partnered with Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) to collaborate on shared environmental health priorities, such as water hazards and heat illness. As such, Arizona's Tracking Program will hold its Technical Advisory Group Meeting alongside Maricopa's Bridging Climate Change Meeting in order to leverage the existing network of expertise.
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Healthcare Facility Heat Alert Survey
This summer, staff within the Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) Office of Epidemiology initiated a survey to evaluate and further develop a countywide heat-related communication alert to increase healthcare provider awareness of excessive heat warnings and enhance communication in regards to heat exposure. This project is part of the MCDPH Implementation and Monitoring Strategy (IMS) for extreme weather. This survey is one of the adaptations or intervention strategies to mitigate negative outcomes from extreme weather events.
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The adaptation aims to:
- Determine what information regarding heat exposure is most useful for healthcare providers;
- Inform providers of excessive heat warnings;
- Increase healthcare provider consideration of potentially vulnerable patient populations prior to discharge;
- Provide information regarding resources for heat relief available throughout Maricopa County; and
- Open lines of communication between MCDPH and healthcare providers regarding heat exposure and other climate sensitive hazards.
A survey of healthcare providers currently receiving excessive heat warning alerts from MCDPH has been completed and analyses are currently being finalized.
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Nature's Cooling Systems
The Nature’s Cooling Systems Project is led by the Nature Conservancy, in partnership with Maricopa County Department of Public Health, Arizona State University’s Urban Climate Research Center and Urban Resilience to Extremes Sustainability Research Network, and the Central Arizona Conservation Alliance, and with community-based organizations Phoenix Revitalization Corporation, Puente Movement, and RAILMesa. Initial funding for the project was provided by Vitalyst Health Foundation.
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Currently, project collaborators are developing Heat Action Plans with residents in three neighborhoods in the Valley, including Edison-Eastlake Community, the Water Tower Improvement District in Mesa, and West South Phoenix. A series of 3 workshops was recently completed in each neighborhood, building excitement, social capital, and capacity for addressing urban heat! Over the new few months, collaborators will sort through the rich information provided by residents and start developing neighborhood-specific designs for cooler spaces.
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Environmental Heat Statistics
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Year-to-Date Heat-Associated Deaths
Year-to-date, 33 confirmed heat-associated deaths have been reported to the Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH). An additional 139 deaths are currently under investigation for which heat is suspected to be a contributing factor.
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2016 Annual Heat Report
The total count of all reported heat-associated deaths occurring in 2016 has been finalized and data analysis of these deaths has been completed. A total of 154 confirmed heat-associated deaths were reported to MCDPH in 2016, more than any previous year on record. The Heat-Associated Deaths in Maricopa County, AZ Final Report for 2016 has been published on the MCDPH website. Click the link below to see this final report as well as weekly heat-associated morbidity and mortality reports for Maricopa County.
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Upcoming Climate and Health Events
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Rainwater Harvesting System and Pollinator Garden Install
10/6/2018 & 10/13/2018 - 8:00am to 12:00pm
Install a rainwater harvesting system and pollinator garden at Catholic Charities Care Partnership. Families welcome.
Click here
to volunteer for 10/6 or
click here
for 10/13.
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Tree Planting in South Phoenix
10/20/2018 - 9:30am to 12:00pm
Volunteers are wanted to help bring the power of nature to South Phoenix by tree planting at “hot spot” locations identified through neighborhood Heat Action Planning with residents! Trees are critical in urban environments to provide shade and to cool and clean the air.
Click here
to volunteer.
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