Policy Brief on Climate Change

Climate change has a profound effect on population health. From exposure to heat waves and extreme weather to spread of diseases and worsening air pollution, climate change has turned into a critical health concern (American Public Health Association, 2020). The present policy brief evaluates the implications of hurricanes as a climate change issue on population health.

The population affected

The population affected by hurricanes are the persons residing in the areas covered by the Hurricane Alley. This is the area where many hurricanes form in the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean stretching from north Africa’s west coast to USA Gulf Coast in the South and Central America’s east coast (Ling, 2019). These areas are routinely buffeted during the hurricane season with the areas receiving the most direct hits being the states of Texas, Louisiana, Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina in the USA. Other states along the east coast of the USA will also occasionally report direct hits from hurricanes (Griggs, 2017).

At what level does it occur, local, state or national

Hurricanes occur at the national level. Historical data from direct hurricane hits in the USA reveal that all the states along the east coast of the USA have had direct hurricanes hits between 1851 and 2017. Florida accounts for the largest number of hits, reported at 40% of all hits recorded across the USA with 117 hits reported between 1851 and 2017. Texas was second with 64 hits, Louisiana was third with 54 hits, North Carolina was fourth with 51 hits, and South Carolina was fourth with 32 hits for the same time period. Since hurricanes have been reported in 18 states along the east cost of the USA, then hurricanes can be considered as a national issue with effects across state lines (Griggs, 2017). Policy Brief on Climate Change Essay Discussion Paper

Evidence about the issues supported by resources

Hurricanes are accompanied by flooding and coastal storms that present a concern for the areas receiving direct hits, especially in urban areas. With highly developed and densely populated areas, the states receiving direct hurricane hits are facing significant health risks associated with flooding to include poor physical health, anxiety, depression and injuries. Other health outcomes from hurricanes include hazards from exposure to storms and floods, evacuation, inadequate housing, exposure to contaminated water, moisture and mold in housing, services disruption, and population displacement. Due to the rising sea level caused by climate change, the intensity, duration and frequency of flooding from hurricanes is expected to increase. In fact, climate change has exacerbated the risks of floods occurring even as the sea levels rise owing to global warming thereby intensifying the coastal storms (Lane et al., 2013). Smith, Banik and Haque (2018) add to the discussion by noting that hurricanes can be catastrophic as they cause deaths and injuries. They disrupt drinking water supplies, and contaminate fresh water sources. In addition, they cause the health care facilities to be burdened as many people make use of emergency services even as some of the affected persons fail to receive the services. Besides that, they cause power outages so that some of the health services become difficult to provide (Smith, Banik & Haque, 2018). In this respect, hurricanes present a public health concern.

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Problem statement

Hurricanes have been an existing concern along the east coast of the USA. They have become more catastrophic as a result of climate change as the sea level rises. As hurricanes occur, they are accompanied by floods even as property is destroyed and lives threatened. Besides that, access to public amenities such as water and electricity is limited with supply being interrupted. The issue is how prepared are the local populations in the affected states to handle the public health concerns of hurricanes. Not every person in the affected areas is ready to face hurricanes and there is a need to ensure that these populations are readied even as health resources are prepared to handle emergencies (Patton, Zalon & Ludwick, 2015).

Suggestion for addressing the health issue caused by the current policy

The health issue is the threats to public health that hurricanes present to the affected populations. Some of these populations are caught unawares by the hurricanes despite being given warnings hours in advance of the hurricanes. In fact, some of the populations end up sheltering in unsecure buildings while other go without basic amenities such as food and drinking water simply because none was readied beforehand. Besides that, health care resources are not well prepared to handle the resultant emergency situations. Two suggestions have been made for addressing the public health issue caused by hurricanes. The first suggestion is to present emergency broadcast public health information systems that helps the public to better prepare for the health emergencies. The second suggestion is to prepare medical resources for handling the emergencies from hurricanes, to include medication and medical personnel (Patton, Zalon & Ludwick, 2015).

Describe steps that are required to initiate policy change

Nine steps have been identified for initiating policy change. The first step is to identify the need for the policy change in terms of a problem within the population. Hurricanes cause significant harms and the appropriate policies are required to ensure that the potential for harm is mitigated. The second step is identifying who will take responsibility for the different aspects of the policy change. The responsibilities will be assigned based on expertise, to include legislators making changes in the associated laws. The third step is to collect the information on the policy change to include legal responsibilities, population data, organizations involved, and template examples that can be drawn from. The fourth step is drafting the policy change in terms of complexity, length and wording. The fifth step is consulting the appropriate stakeholders would consider and discuss potential implications. The sixth step is finalizing and approving the policy. The seventh step is considering the procedures to support the policy, such as setting up a public information system and information to be provided in the system. The eighth step is implementing the policy by communicating with the stakeholders and providing training if required. The final step is monitoring, reviewing and revising the policy to ensure that it is used as intended to achieve the desired outcomes, and responses are incorporated for improvements (Mason et al., 2016).

Stakeholders

Three groups of stakeholders have been identified. The first group are those who are involved in policy operations to include coalition members, funding agencies, partners, policy staff, and management. The second group of stakeholders are served and affected by the policy. They include elected officials, community members, advocacy groups and clients/patients. The third group of stakeholders are the intended users of the policy change proposal, to include the persons in a position to make decisions about the policy such as taxpayers/general public, coalition members, funding agencies, and partners (Milstead & Short, 2019).

Discuss the impact on healthcare delivery system

Implementing the policy suggestions is expected to improve health outcomes for populations in the target areas in the case of a hurricane occurring. Firstly, the public will be better prepared to handle hurricanes so that they will shelter in secure buildings, and have enough medication, food, clothing and other basic amenities to go through the hurricane safely. Secondly, ensuring that medical resources are in place to handle health emergencies resultant from hurricane events (Patton, Zalon & Ludwick, 2015).

References

American Public Health Association (2020). Climate Change. https://www.apha.org/topics-and-issues/climate-change

Griggs, B. (2017). No other state gets hit by hurricanes as often as Florida. https://edition.cnn.com/2017/09/11/us/hurricanes-landfall-by-state-trnd/index.html

Lane, K., Charles-Guzman, K., Wheeler, K., Abid, Z., Graber, N., & Matte, T. (2013). Health Effects of Coastal Storms and Flooding in Urban Areas: A Review and Vulnerability Assessment. Journal of Environmental and Public Health, Volume 2013, Article ID 913064. https://doi.org/10.1155/2013/913064

Ling, D. (2019). 20 fast facts about Hurricane Alley and the Atlantic hurricane season. https://www.propertycasualty360.com/2019/06/04/20-fast-facts-about-hurricane-alley/?slreturn=20201026034752

Mason, D., Gardner, D., Outlaw, F., & O’Grady, E. (2016). Policy & Politics in Nursing and Health Care (7^th ed.). Elsevier.

Milstead, J. & Short, N. (2019). Health Policy and Politics: A Nurse’s Guide (6^th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Patton, R., Zalon, M., & Ludwick, R. (Eds.) (2015). Nurses Making Policy: From Bedside to Boardroom. Springer Publishing Company.

Smith, J., Banik, S., & Haque, U. (2018). Catastrophic hurricanes and public health dangers: lesson learned. Journal of Public Health and Emergency, 2(2). https://doi.org/10.21037/jphe.2018.01.04

Research public health issues on the climate change topics and issues pages of the American public health association (APHA) website

• Investigate a public health issue related to an environmental within the united states health care delivery system and examine its effect on a specific population
• Write 750-1000 word policy brief that summarizes the issue, explains the effect on the population, and proposes a solution to the issue

Describe the policy health issue

Include the following information

1. The population affected
2. At what level does it occur, local, state or national
3. Evidence about the issues supported by resources
4. Create a problem statement
5. Provide suggestion for addressing the health issue caused by the current policy
6. Describe steps that are required to initiate policy change
7. Include necessary stakeholders (government officials, adminstrators and budget funding considerations
8. Discuss the impact on healthcare delivery system
9. Include at least 3 references

Policy Brief on Climate Change Essay Discussion Paper