Ministry of Health and Wellness to develop climate resilient health systems

The Bahamas, December 15, 2021 –  – The government is making good on its commitment to fight the impact climate change is having on this island nation through a number of health initiatives.

In this vein, the Ministry of Health and Wellness held a virtual press conference to inform the public of collaborative efforts with a number of local and regional organizations and entities.

The press conference held Tuesday, December 14, 2021 was addressed by Dr. Phillip Swann, Acting Chief Medical Officer, who spoke on behalf of the Minister of Health and Wellness.

“The World Health Organization advises that climate change is the single biggest health threat facing humanity, and health professionals worldwide.  Health professionals are already responding to the health harms caused by this unfolding crisis, and so are we,” Dr. Swann said.

In an effort to coordinate the Caribbean region’s response to climate change, the “Developing a Climate Resilient Health System in The Bahamas” project was developed, he said.

The project is a team effort between Government of The Bahamas, and the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (5Cs).

Organizations in The Bahamas identified to execute the projects are the Ministry of Health and Wellness and the Ministry of the Environment and

Natural Resources.  “This duet of Ministries forms the National Designated Authority (NDA). The Green Climate Fund is a primary source of funding for this project,” he said.

Dr. Swann pointed out that in addition to challenges more recently with the COVID-19 pandemic, The Bahamas is still recovering from the devastation caused by Hurricane Dorian, which landed on our shores as a Category 5 hurricane on 1^st September 2019.

“This terrible hurricane caused flooding and unprecedented destruction in Abaco and Grand Bahama.  This was our worst climate-related experience yet,” he said.

And, later in March 2020, the COVID-19 virus was identified in country. The pandemic laid bare a number of deficiencies in the health system infrastructure – from both technological and physical standpoints: “It threatened our ability to continue to deliver routine health services to the Bahamian public,” said Dr. Swann.

He added, “With the persisting waves of the pandemic, The Bahamas, like many of our sister Caribbean countries found [itself] having to prepare and mitigate against a potential hurricane landfall amid a COVID-19 pandemic.   As we revised our response patterns, guidelines for shelters and other policies several truths were evident.”

Dr. Swann outlined those truths as the urgent need to strengthen linkages; and the need to build human, technical, physical and policy capacity that will address climate change and health issues in The Bahamas.

“This partnership, the work of the NDA is created to work toward strengthening our capacity to strategically respond to and close the aforementioned gaps.

“Enhancing climate resiliency through the Developing a Climate Resilient Health System Project in The Bahamas will assist The Bahamas to strengthen national organizations with human resources and technical knowledge to prepare, coordinate and respond to climate change and health matters.

“These simple steps will contribute towards shaping the Ministry of Health and Wellness Strategic and Resource Mobilization plans. Training will also be provided to key officials who operate in the climate change and health sector.

The project calls for two main actions. The first action is to explore what is meant by and how the Bahamas will incorporate the idea of  “climate SMART health” through the creation of policies and systems that promote climate-resilient health care. And, the second action is to enhance the effectiveness and alignment of surveillance systems that provide information on matters that impact the public’s health.

“A national health and environmental surveillance system will permit the government to not only track climate-change-related illnesses, but also predict and mitigate against patterns of health challenges associated with changes in the climate and physical environment,” Dr. Swann said.

“A surveillance system will also facilitate the focused delivery of assistance and protective measures to vulnerable populations and families that can be impacted by climate emergencies/disasters disaggregated by gender.”

Also involved are the Department of Environmental Planning and Protection, the Ministry of Social Services and Urban Development Disaster Management, Department of Gender and Family Affairs, and the PanAmerican Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO-WHO).

By Lindsay Thompson

Release: BIS