A study, co-led by LSTM, aims to help health workers in Nepal and Zimbabwe improve how they and their health facilities react to the impacts of climate crisis.
REACT (Resilient and Equitable Health Workforce to Address Climate Threats) is a £4 million NIHR-funded study which aims to strengthen the responsiveness of the health workforce against the health impacts of climate crisis.
In collaboration with partners at CeSHHAR (Zimbabwe) and HERD International (Nepal), the LSTM team will work with health workers, managers, policymakers and communities to improve how health facilities react to the worsening climate crisis.
REACT
The climate crisis is the biggest threat to human health, with extreme weather events affecting people emotionally and physically and impacting on their ability to access health care. It is also adversely affecting health systems’ ability to provide services.
The two REACT study countries - Nepal and Zimbabwe – are particularly impacted and present a range of contexts and climate-related challenges for the study..
Professor Joanna Raven, who is co-leading REACT, said: “We are seeing increasing instances of malnutrition, respiratory illnesses, maternal and newborn complications, heat-related deaths, and diseases such as malaria, and the situation will worsen. We need health systems that can withstand these challenges, and health workers are a vital part of that response. They have access to and are trusted by their communities, which is why REACT is working with them to find ways to meet the crisis we all face.”
The REACT team will work with stakeholders to understand health workers’ situations and knowledge, and together will co-create, test and evaluate context-specific interventions to help health workers improve how health facilities react to the health impacts of climate crisis.
There is more on the REACT Consortium here.