Tamil Nadu will establish One Health and Climate Hub (Hub) under the Health and Family Welfare Department as a pre-emptive effort to address the issues intertwined with people, animals and environmental health in the context of climate change.
A Government Order issued by State Health Secretary Supriya Sahu says that the Hub will address region-specific challenges such as rising temperatures, increased vector-borne diseases, biodiversity loss, antimicrobial resistance and coastal vulnerabilities.
The Hub will strengthen the State’s ability to prepare for and mitigate the health impacts of climate change such as heat waves and zoonotic outbreaks, especially in rural and coastal areas.
It will also foster innovative solutions, build capacity in health care and environmental systems, and develop action plans to ensure the health of both people and ecosystems is protected in the face of changing climate patterns, the order said.
The activities proposed under the Hub are development of integrated health and climate strategies; enhance surveillance and research on the health impacts of climate change and facilitate inter-sectoral collaboration and capacity building;.
The Hub will also develop health care systems, Standard Operating Procedure’s capacity building materials and communication platforms; mapping of health impacts and climate change-related diseases; retrofitting existing hospitals with green and climate resilient measures; and collaborate with expert agencies to create frameworks to handle the challenges of Antimicrobial resistance.
A One Health and Climate Change Centre will be set up to establish at both district and state level to monitor and manage physical, financial and epidemiological profiles for climate-sensitive illnesses. The centre will ensure real-time data collection, analysis and reporting to track the incidents of diseases exacerbated by climate change, such as zoonotic disease, vector-borne diseases, heart stress and respiratory illnesses.
The integration of this data will inform resource allocation, healthcare infrastructure and policy making for proactive interventions. This data will support the development of predictive models and enhance district level capacity to climate-induced health risks, the Order said.
The Hub’s chairperson will be the State Health Secretary and Tamil Nadu Health System Project as Member Secretary. There will be four other members from various State health and medical organisations, the Order said.