Nursing on the Frontlines of the Climate Crisis: Education for Action
DATE: October 1 - December 3, 2024 (Tuesdays)
TIME: 12:00 - 1:00 PM Eastern Time (US/Canada)
Video recordings of previous sessions are available on the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments platform. Attendance confirmation for all participants, and Continuing Education credit for U.S.-based participants, will be provided for both live and asynchronous participation.
Introduction
Climate change is a health issue that affects morbidity, mortality, and society’s abilities to deliver healthcare and support healthy living. The effects of climate change are already harming human health around the world, and impacts will only intensify in the coming years. Heat waves and rainstorms are becoming more deadly, disease outbreaks last longer and are seen in new regions, wildfire smoke from tinder-dry forests reduces air quality, and food and water security are threatened by extreme weather. Moreover, climate change exacerbates the global epidemic of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), with disrupted services following extreme weather events and declining food security leading to poor nutrition and associated health risks. Shifting to sustainable practices, such as plant-based diets and alternative transportation, can offer significant co-benefits to both health and the environment.
There is an imperative for quick action on many fronts: to recognize and respond to climate-health threats; prevent climate change at its source by reducing heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions; support “greener” systems throughout the economy, including healthcare; understand the health co-benefits of adaptation and mitigation; and communicate effectively about these issues to safeguard human health.
To meet these challenges, current and future nursing professionals globally must understand the dynamics governing the interactions of climate and health, the level of scientific understanding of those interactions, and potential adaptation, mitigation, and resilience-building solutions, while carrying a respect for the processes and issues not yet fully understood. Furthermore, the nursing profession needs to be able to apply these principles to individual and population level health needs to devise individual and locally meaningful public health solutions. Education is key in the effort to increase knowledge and skills among nursing professionals, clinicians, public health practitioners, emergency responders, educators, healthcare leaders, and policy makers in order to build capacity and so they may continue to serve as trusted voices within their professions and institutions.
Program Description
Nursing on the Frontlines of the Climate Crisis Course: Education for Action was developed through a partnership between the Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education (GCCHE); the Global Nurses Working Group (GNWG)/Nursing Climate Resources for Health Education (N-CRHE); the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments (AHNE), the Canadian Association of Nurses for the Environment (CANE), and Climate Action Nurses (CAN) will address this critical need.
The Course’s key goals are to:
- Increase nursing professionals’ knowledge, self-efficacy, and communication skills related to the climate crisis to: 1) improve patient care and public health practice and 2) serve as trusted messengers within their institutions, communities, and fields of practice.
- Equip interested nursing professionals with the knowledge and skills needed to disseminate education so that health effects of climate change and emergency preparedness can be incorporated more easily into pre- and post-licensure nursing education across the globe.
- Build and strengthen an agile and informed nursing community around climate and health education, advocacy, and policy for health professionals with strong mentorship and expert support.
Audience
All nursing professionals interested in climate change and health are welcome!
Nurses, nurse practitioners, nursing students, nursing educators, hospital administrators, health system leaders, health educators, policymakers, environmental nursing professionals, government officials, journalists, advocates, or those otherwise working in an area impacted by climate change.
Course Structure
The foundation of this educational initiative is the GCCHE core competencies for health professionals, a highly vetted set of global educational standards which covers climate change and health analytic skills and knowledge, communication and collaboration, policy, public health, and clinical practice competencies. The sessions, designed around case-based learning, help nurses, nurse practitioners, nursing students, and nurse educators gain the expertise required to provide needed climate and health services.
The course will consist of ten weekly (Tuesday) live-virtual 60-minute sessions targeted towards nursing professionals from all backgrounds. Each session will consist of 30-35 minutes of theory/foundation followed by a case study presentation, and opportunity for a question and answer period. Lectures will be delivered by local and global practicing nursing experts in the field. The live question and answer session will be monitored by the program team who will consolidate the questions to be addressed by the expert lecturers. Resources such as frameworks and suggested readings will be provided to all course participants following each session. Video recordings will be available following each session for asynchronous view.
Session Topics:
Session 1: Oct 1 - Basic Climate Change for the Nursing Professional
Featuring: Teddie M. Potter, PhD, RN, FAAN, FNAP, Clinical Professor, Director - Center for Planetary Health and Environmental Justice, Directorate - Katharine J. Densford International Center for Nursing Leadership, Executive Editor - Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies,School of Nursing University of Minnesota
This presentation discusses the critical role of nursing professionals in addressing the climate and health crisis. Participants will explore key climate change concepts, including environmental determinants of health, greenhouse gas emissions, and the health sector’s contribution to environmental degradation.
Session Learning Objectives:
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Advocate that the voice of nursing professionals is essential to address the climate and health crisis
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Define the language (e.g. climate change, sustainability, environmental determinants of health, greenhouse gasses, etc.) and parameters of the climate crisis in relation to the transdisciplinary planetary health education framework
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Compare the major contributors to the climate crisis.
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Describe how the accumulation of greenhouse gas emissions leads to the planet’s warming.
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Discuss the implications of the climate crisis in regards to environmental determinants of health.
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Explain the main health impacts of climate change, how the health sector contributes to climate change and environmental degradation
Session 2: Oct 8 - Vector-borne Disease
Featuring: Tracy Kelly, DNP, APRN, CPNP-P/AC, Assistant Professor of Nursing, Pediatric Acute Care Specialty Lead, UVA School of Nursing
This presentation discusses the relationship between climate change and vector-borne diseases (VBD), including water-borne, food-borne, and zoonotic diseases. It highlights the roles nurses can play in VBD prevention and identifies intersectoral measures that mitigate VBD risks.
Session Learning Objectives:
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Describe the relationships between VBD and climate change (e.g. water-borne, food-borne and zoonotic).
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Identify nursing roles associated with prevention of VBDs.
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Discuss how positionality and intersectionality shapes discourses of exposed populations at risk and vulnerable to VBD.
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Identify intersectoral and multisectoral measures at local, regional, and national levels that mitigate the risk of acquiring VBDs and the adverse effects of VBD on health.
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Define the epidemiology of VBD as these relate to climate change.
Session 3: Oct 15 - Water-and Food Related Illness
Featuring: Martha Fuller, PhD, APRN, Associate Professor, Hahn School of Nursing and Health Science, University of San Diego
This presentation discusses the impacts of climate change on water and food security. Participants will examine threats such as poor water management, drought, and contamination, as well as their effects on human health. Solutions for addressing these challenges and promoting regional water conservation are also explored.
Session Learning Objectives:
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Define water security and identify threats and solutions to water security that impact human health (poor water management, rights and access, infrastructure, war and conflict, drought, poor agriculture practices, heavy metals and toxic waste, inadequate mitigation of contamination).
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Discuss the impact of climate change on water (including sea level), land, crops, food storage, pest, and disease.
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List the factors that determine food security in different regions of the world.
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Discuss the impact of climate change on communities most affected by food and water insecurity within the scope of population health promotion or planetary health.
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Map the pathways that indicate how climate change impacts food security and human health outcomes
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Identify best practices and regional models in water conservation in personal use, in the workplace, and in community settings.
Session 4: Oct 22 - Extreme Weather: Hurricanes and Flooding
Featuring: Barbara Sattler, RN, DrPH, FAAN, Professor Emeritus, University of San Francisco, Leadership Council, California Nurses for Environmental Health and Justice, Founding member, Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environment
This presentation discusses the increased risks of extreme weather events such as hurricanes and flooding due to climate change. It highlights the health impacts on vulnerable populations and the socio-economic and environmental consequences of such events.
Session Learning Objectives:
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Describe the ways in which climate change increases the risk of extreme events such as hurricanes, inland, and coastal flooding.
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Identify environmental hazards to infants, children, and adolescents during extreme weather events.
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Explore the impacts of extreme weather effects on the health of humans and the planet.
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Compare the potential extreme weather events caused by climate change that are the most likely to occur in specific regions along with other parts of the world.
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Identify the physical, psychological, and socio-economic impacts/consequences of extreme weather events that make individuals and populations more vulnerable to health impacts from extreme weather hazards.
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Discuss the sociological, ecological, and biological effects of climate change on human health.
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Describe the trajectory of effects based on current climate projections.
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Session 5: Oct 29 - Mental Health
Featuring:
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Mitzie Rains Meyers, PhD, RN, CNE, AHN-BC, Instructor, University of Northern Colorado School of Nursing, Clinical advisor, Tender Care Pediatrics in Fort Collins, Planetary Health Task Force for the American Holistic Nurses Association
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Josephine S.C. Williams, RN, BScN, CEN, M.Ed, Clinical Instructor, The University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus, Antigua and Barbuda
This presentation discusses the mental health impacts of climate change, particularly on vulnerable populations. It covers barriers to accessing mental health services, strategies for health promotion, and coping mechanisms for climate-related stress.
Session Learning Objectives:
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Eco-grief and Eco-anxiety/solastalgia:
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Identify self-care and health promotion practices through mental health frameworks and strategies in relation to how communities cope with climate crisis.
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Describe the factors that influence the psychological impacts of the climate crisis on the most vulnerable populations.
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Identify potential barriers that prevent individuals who experience climate distress from accessing mental health services.
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Discuss the factors influencing the mental health consequences of climate change in specific regions of the world.
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Explore the unequal burden of climate related mental health disorders and discuss strategies for targeted interventions in vulnerable populations.
Session 6: Nov 5 - Pollution - Soil, Water, Waste
Featuring: Ruth McDermott-Levy, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN, Professor & Co-Director, Mid-Atlantic Center for Children's Health and the Environment, M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing, Villanova University
This presentation discusses the health effects of environmental pollution, including soil, water, and plastic waste. Participants will learn about the pathways through which pollutants enter ecosystems and their impact on human health.
Session Learning Objectives:
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Identify the major forms of environmental pollutants and the causes of each.
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Define the parameters of pollution and how these affect human and planetary health.
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Describe the adverse effects of the introduction of pollutants into our natural environment.
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Trace the effects of soil organic carbon stocks and freshwater as a result of human activities affecting ecosystems and ecological processes.
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Explain health harms from plastics pollution and identify resources for reducing plastic waste in personal use, in the workplace and community settings.
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Describe the health effects of environmental pollution on soil and water
Session 7: Nov 12 - Degraded Air Quality and Wildfires
Featuring: Raluca Radu, RN, MSN - Planetary Health Lead, Providence Health Care; Adjunct Professor, School of Nursing, The University of British Columbia
This presentation discusses the relationship between air quality, climate change, and health. Participants will explore how wildfires and air pollution affect respiratory health and increase the risk of chronic diseases.
Session Learning Objectives:
- Identify the major air pollutants that threaten air quality in regions of the world
- Define the parameters of air quality guidelines/standards in relation to exposure and health outcomes of populations in a local region.
- List the potential indoor and outdoor environmental factors that lead to air pollution and increased allergens.
- Discuss how air pollution is linked to climate change and the effects on human health.
- Describe the mechanisms by which heat worsens air quality.
- Identify the chronic diseases related to air pollution (outdoor/indoor air, workplaces, drinking water).
- Explain how the effects of air pollution (poor air quality standards) affect the health of populations in specific regions of the world.
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Identify populations that are vulnerable to degraded air quality.
Session 8: Nov 19 - Heat Related Illness
Featuring:
- Michelle DePhillips, DNP, MPH, RN, ACNPC-AG, Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, Assistant Professor, University of Delaware
- Karen Duderstadt, PhD, RN, CPNP-PC, Clinical Professor Emerita, University of California San Francisco School of Nursing
- Gina Friel, DNP, CRNP-PC, Global Nurses Working Group, Director, Nursing Climate Resources for Health Education (N-CRHE), Co-Founder; Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
This presentation discusses the health impacts of heat-related illnesses, including heat stroke. It will identify vulnerable populations, preventive measures, and best practices for managing heat-related illnesses in clinical settings.
Session Learning Objectives:
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Describe the symptoms of heat related illness and differentiate symptoms of heat stroke.
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Identify populations vulnerable to heat-related illness and the specific barriers these populations face.
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Describe the preventive measures to minimize/avoid heat-related illness and heat stroke.
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Differentiate between the treatment of heat-related illness and heat stroke.
Session 9: Nov 26 - Climate Change Mitigation, Adaptation and Resilience
Featuring: Heather Baid, PhD, RN, SFHEA, Principal Lecturer, Sustainability in Critical Care Practice, University of Brighton
This presentation discusses climate change mitigation, adaptation, and resilience strategies. Nurses will learn how healthcare systems can reduce their greenhouse gas footprint and adapt to changing climate conditions.
Session Learning Objectives:
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Define and distinguish between climate mitigation, adaptation, and resilience
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Apply the concepts of mitigation and adaptation to the healthcare sector and explore examples of how healthcare systems can perform both.
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Describe how nursing professionals can partner with nurse educators, professional organizations, and advocacy groups to reduce healthcare sector greenhouse gas footprint.
Session 10: Dec 3 - Climate Change and Health Equity
Featuring: Suellen Breakey, PhD, RN, FAAN, Distinguished Teaching Associate Professor, Associate Director, Center for Climate Change, Climate Justice, and Health School of Nursing
This presentation discusses the intersection of climate change and health equity, focusing on the disproportionate impacts of climate-related health threats on vulnerable populations and strategies for advancing climate and environmental justice.
Session Learning Objectives:
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Describe the concepts of climate justice and environmental justice.
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Identify social and environmental determinants of health that make individuals and communities more vulnerable to climate-related health threats (elderly, children, socioeconomically disadvantaged, homeless, immunocompromised patients, patients with chronic medical conditions/ Non-Communicable Diseases).
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Evaluate health inequities related to air pollution exposures in communities and populations with adverse health impacts from excessive exposure to air pollution and other environmental injustices
Contact: Haley Campbell (she/her), hec2141@columbia.edu
