THA health secretary at climate health workshop in Jamaica

SECRETARY of the Health, Wellness and Social Protection Dr Faith BYisrael will be one of the lead health professionals co-chairing a brainstorming session at a climate heat and health workshop, from April 16-18 in Kingston, Jamaica.

BYisrael will also be among her peers as a panellist exploring stakeholders’ perspectives on excessive heat and impacts on health.

According to a media release from her division, the climate heat and health workshop is organised by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA), National Weather Service (NWS) and the Meteorological Service of Jamaica (MSJ), as part of the US President’s Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience (PREPARE). The plan focuses on enhancing capacity for climate adaptation and resilience, primarily assisting countries to adapt and manage the impacts of climate change by 2030. It also supports the United Nations Early Warning for All initiative.

The workshop brings together climate and health stakeholders from across the Caribbean to assess current capacity and challenges for heat-health early warning systems; develop a framework for a heat-health early warning system; and identify next steps for advancing these systems.

Participants include professionals from National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs); the Caribbean Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH); Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA); Health Districts; Pan American Health Organization (PAHO); World Meteorological Organization RA-IV Regional Office; and non-governmental organisations such as the Red Cross, local authorities and community organisations.

Following the workshop, NOAA will work with core climate and health partners in Trinidad and Tobago to develop and use heat wave forecasting tools and integrate them with health vulnerability data, ultimately helping to co-develop the health risks and to issue warnings and alerts when necessary.