Tamilnadu will establish a One Health and Climate Hub (Hub) under the Department of Health and Family Welfare as a preventive effort to address issues related to the health of people, animals and the environment in the context of climate change.
A government order issued by State Health Secretary Supriya Sahu said the Center will address region-specific challenges such as rising temperatures, increase in vector-borne diseases, loss of biodiversity, antimicrobial resistance and coastal vulnerabilities.
The Hub will strengthen the state’s capacity to prepare for and mitigate the health impacts of climate change such as heat waves and zoonotic outbreaks, particularly in rural and coastal areas.
It will also foster innovative solutions, build capacity in health care and environmental systems, and develop action plans to ensure the health of people and ecosystems is protected in the face of climate change, the order said.
The activities proposed under the Hub are the development of integrated health and climate strategies; improve monitoring and research on the health impacts of climate change and facilitate cross-sectoral collaboration and capacity building;
The Hub will also develop healthcare systems, capacity building materials and communication platforms for standard operating procedures; mapping health impacts and diseases linked to climate change; modernize existing hospitals with green and climate resilient measures; and collaborate with expert agencies to create frameworks to address the challenges of antimicrobial resistance.
A One Health and Climate Change center will be established to monitor and manage the physical, financial and epidemiological profiles of climate-sensitive diseases at the district and state levels. The center will ensure real-time data collection, analysis and reporting to track incidents of diseases exacerbated by climate change, such as zoonoses, vector-borne diseases, cardiac stress and respiratory diseases.
Integrating this data will inform resource allocation, healthcare infrastructure, and policy development for proactive interventions. This data will support the development of predictive models and improve the capacity of districts to address climate-induced health risks, the Order said.
The Chairman of the Hub will be the State Health Secretary and Tamil Nadu Health System Project as Member Secretary. There will be four other members from various health and medical organizations in the State, the Order specifies.
