Preventing disasters: public health vulnerability reduction as a sustainable adaptation to climate change.
Disaster Med Public Health Prep
; 5(2): 140-8, 2011 Jun.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-21402799
ABSTRACT
Global warming could increase the number and severity of extreme weather events. These events are often known to result in public health disasters, but we can lessen the effects of these disasters. By addressing the factors that cause changes in climate, we can mitigate the effects of climate change. By addressing the factors that make society vulnerable to the effects of climate, we can adapt to climate change. To adapt to climate change, a comprehensive approach to disaster risk reduction has been proposed. By reducing human vulnerability to disasters, we can lessen--and at times even prevent--their impact. Human vulnerability is a complex phenomenon that comprises social, economic, health, and cultural factors. Because public health is uniquely placed at the community level, it has the opportunity to lessen human vulnerability to climate-related disasters. At the national and international level, a supportive policy environment can enable local adaptation to disaster events. The purpose of this article is to introduce the basic concept of disaster risk reduction so that it can be applied to preventing and mitigating the negative effects of climate change and to examine the role of community-focused public health as a means for lessening human vulnerability and, as a result, the overall risk of climate-related disasters.
Texto completo:
1
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Cambio Climático
/
Evaluación de Programas y Proyectos de Salud
/
Práctica de Salud Pública
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Conducta de Reducción del Riesgo
/
Planificación en Desastres
/
Desastres
Tipo de estudio:
Etiology_studies
/
Evaluation_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Límite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Disaster Med Public Health Prep
Asunto de la revista:
SAUDE PUBLICA
Año:
2011
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Estados Unidos