Planetary health
Advertising
Unit 596
August 2022
This edition of check considers the relationship between human health and planetary systems.
Planetary health is ‘the health of human civilisation and the state of the natural systems on which it depends’. ±«ÓãÊÓƵ has recognised climate change as a key public health issue and acknowledges it as ‘an urgent, significant and growing threat to health worldwide’.
The most direct health consequence of climate change is heat-related illness, with extreme heat having the potential to cause a wide range of effects from heat stress to death. The increasing temperatures also lead to an increase in bushfires, which are associated with several respiratory and cardiovascular conditions, especially asthma.
Changes in rainfall patterns, increased temperatures and tidal levels all contribute to increased vector breeding season and vector-borne disease transmission. Damage to housing and stagnated and polluted water sources also amplify mosquito-borne and gastrointestinal diseases.
There are a number of ways in which climate change can affect mental health, including ‘climate anxiety’ and other psychological consequences. Direct effects of heat include an increase in interpersonal violence, self-harm and suicide.
Lifestyle medicine provides a number of ‘co-benefits’ for certain conditions, with the potential to reverse disease while also benefitting the community and the environment.
At the end of this activity, participants will be able to:
Below is a list of the case studies found in this month's edition of check. To see how these case studies unfold and gain valuable insights into this months topic, log into gplearning to complete the course.
Itsuki, aged 34 years, is new to you but known to others at the practice from occasional visits for asthma. He has come to see you on a day when the air is thick with smoke haze from bushfires. The practice receptionists identified via screening questions that Itsuki is slightly breathless and has a cough, so they asked him to stay outside the practice for now. Observing Itsuki through a window, you notice him slide his mask aside for a moment to inhale a dose of salbutamol.
Kirra, aged 35 years, is an Aboriginal woman who presents to your rural clinic with a five-day history of headache and fever.
Kate, aged 32 years, and her daughter, Alicia, aged eight months, attend a double appointment at your Victorian coastal town clinic on a hot summer morning in February (36 °C) following several days of hot weather above 30°C.
Ella, aged 24 years, works in hospitality and is studying environmental science. She presents asking about her options for surgical infertility as she has decided not to have children. She would like you to refer her for a bilateral salpingectomy or a tubal ligation as she has read that these are the most effective long-term options.
Al, aged 65 years, is a man from Kiribati who presents for review of his pathology results. He is well known to you for presentations with knee osteoarthritis, and you have had several brief discussions over the years regarding his weight, which has continued to increase. Al had an elevated fasting glucose test result four months ago, so you asked him to repeat some fasting blood tests, with additional testing. He is a non-smoker and non-drinker with no other substance issues.
This unit of check is approved for 10 hours of CPD activity (two hours per case). The 10 hours, when completed, including the online questions, comprise five hours’ ±«ÓãÊÓƵal Activities and five hours’ Reviewing Performance.
To enroll in this check unit online:
Please note: If you're not a member of the RACGP or don't have a check subscription, click here.
Each unit of check comprises approximately five clinical cases, and the choice of cases will cover the broad spectrum of the unit’s topic. Each unit will be led by a GP with an interest and capability in the topic, and they will scope the five different cases for that unit in collaboration with the check team.