According to the World Health Organization, climate change is the single largest health threat facing humanity today.1 Unfortunately, vulnerable communities and patients with pre-existing conditions will feel the effects, including cancer patients, according to Milagros Elia, MA, APRN, ANP-BC. Therefore, climate change is not just a healthcare issue, but an oncology nursing issue. Oncology nurses need to understand how changes in local climates can affect how they care for their patients.
“For oncology nurses, it is important to understand who patients are most at risk, why, what puts them at risk, and through which pathways,” Elijah said.
Elia recently presented the topic of climate change as part of the Society for Oncology Nursing Bridge 2022. After the presentation, Oncology Nursing News® He met with her to gain a better understanding of how climate change calls for action by oncology nurses.
As she pointed out in her presentation, weather events have the potential to disrupt essential public health infrastructures and overwhelm health services.2 Health systems are expected to remain on the front line and bear high costs from the growing number of climate extremes.3-7
Moreover, some of the poorest health systems in the United States are likely to feel the effects of climate change because they have limited tools or resources to protect themselves. For example, communities such as the Navajo Nation, which have limited indoor running water systems, and individuals who live in places such as the “Cancer Trail” in Louisiana are prime examples of populations whose health conditions are directly related to their local environments.
This also includes patients who live in geographically vulnerable areas, such as places prone to flooding, where this can cause problems including contaminated drinking water, food insecurity due to drought, increase in vector-borne diseases, transportation difficulties and consequent barriers to care. . She noted that oncology nurses should be aware of the fact that individuals of color and those living in low-income communities traditionally suffer from systemically higher exposures to health-threatening climatic conditions.
“We are only at the strength of our weakest link. In this case, this means the most vulnerable population,” Elijah said. She noted that this includes the elderly, the very young, those with treatment-related setbacks, or those at increased risk of heat stroke or respiratory disease — such as patients with lung cancer or lung metastases.
“How do we allow continued care when we have a flooded area?” Elijah commented. “or [where there are] Forest fires? Now we have barriers to access: there are trees below or there [power] down lines. Patients cannot receive the next health care. We don’t have global structures in place to get around that. “
In the short and medium term, the health [effects] Climate change to be identified [by] How much flexibility really? [been] Built into the current rate of climate change.” “The impacts will increasingly depend on the extent of actions taken now to reduce emissions and avoid the dangerous temperature thresholds and potentially irreversible tipping points that we quickly face.”
Of concern to Elijah and other oncology nurses is an increase in global temperatures, as heat can take lives and affect health in many ways. Investigators at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have determined that the 10 hottest years on record have been in the past two decades and that summer 2022 will be the coldest summer we will move on. As Ilya pointed out, this is a frightening threat to human health.
“Of these climate threats, the biggest threat we’re dealing with here in the United States and globally, is heat,” she said. “As nurses, we know that extreme heat can take a toll on the body, and increase the risk of heat-related illness and hospitalization.”
Heat, when combined in an area with flooding, becomes a breeding ground for vector-borne diseases, and mold and mildew enter homes. It also increases the risk of heat-related illness and hospitalization. Furthermore, heat waves may put individuals at greater risk for the effects of UV radiation. Ilya noted that science has proven that physical activity is a key factor in cancer prevention and is recommended during treatment, but for patients who live in cement cities with small green spaces, taking advantage of physical activity during heat waves is a challenge.
Elijah summarized: “Climate change is likely to affect cancer control actions, along the cancer continuum, from increasing exposure areas, etiology, and modifying behaviors to prevention and early detection all the way through detection, diagnosis, treatment and survival.”
How can oncology nurses make a difference?
Nurses are the #1 trusted profession, and as such, they are in a good position to connect the dots to patients and families to help them understand the impact of their local environment, according to Elijah.
“Our professional duties require that we assess and treat our patients and their symptoms in clinical practice,” she said. “We provide them with the resources to meet their needs.”
In my presentation at ONS, I highlighted some of the texts on climate change that oncology nurses may find useful in talking to their patients.
For example, socially isolated patients, the elderly, children, outdoor workers, those with chronic comorbidities (eg obesity, cardiovascular disease, etc.), or urban ethnic minorities with low socioeconomic resources They may be at greater risk of heat illness. To these patients and their caregivers, the nurse might say, “We are seeing more and more hot days each year in our area due to climate change and the heat can be harsh on individuals with breathing problems or the elderly. Let’s discuss ways to make sure you are prepared (eg. Example, check the heat indicator on and off early in the day), and options for getting a break from the heat if needed.”
Adults with cardiovascular and/or chronic lung disease and children with asthma are exposed to air pollution. To these patients and their caregivers, the nurse might say, “Climate change and air pollution are caused by the same thing: burning fossil fuels. Together they make air quality worse, and that can worsen heart and lung disease. Checking air quality and avoiding roads can help.” Crowded when you go out to exercise in your protection.”
For those who suffer from any cardiovascular or respiratory diseases, they are at risk of extreme weather conditions such as wildfires. When addressing these patients, the nurse might say,
“Forest fires are becoming more common due to climate change. Smoke and particulate matter can travel many miles and can be dangerous especially for individuals with heart or lung disease. It is important to check air quality information when there are bushfires. Here is a file Online resource To help you do this and tips to reduce exposure.”
Ilya added that there are many free apps that are recommended to patients. “If our patients have increased chronic respiratory symptoms, we can talk to them about government applications that have been developed to look at free air quality. We always want to empower our patients.” We give them [those] tools, make that connection to them and enable them to be self-sufficient.”
She noted that climate change will not be a conversation that all patients will accept; However, it is still the job of the oncology nurse to provide their patients with the best tools that will allow them to manage their health.
“Climate change will not necessarily be the topic that you are open to your patients to talk about,” she said. “It is not your job to sit there and try to convince them that all their new symptoms are caused by climate change [or that they] became a defender. This is not the reason we are here. We are here to support them.”
“You don’t need to use the word climate change with them — unless they are open to that conversation. What you have to do is address their symptoms and establish a connection with their environment. So that it makes sense for them, and then give them the tools to help them deal with those symptoms. We We take the lead.”
references
- Climate change and health. World Health Organization. October 30, 2021. Accessed September 22, 2022. https://bit.ly/2SXgflM
- Elijah M. Climate change and its impact on health. Filed In: ONS Bridge; from 13 to 15 September 2022; virtual.
- Nogueira LM, Yabroff KR, Bernstein A. Climate change and cancer. CA Cancer J Clin. 2020; 70 (4): 239–244. doi: 10.3322/caac.21610
- Walker RK, Pereira Morales S, Ker R, Schenk E. Climate change should be on the agenda of all nursing research. Uncolour Forum. 2020; 47 (2): 135-144. doi: 10.1188/20.ONF.135-144
- Butterfield P, Livers J, Vasquez MD. The pivotal role of nursing in global climate action. BMJ. 2021; 14 (373): 1049. doi: 10.1136/bmj.n1049. PMCID: PMC8201521.
- Man RX, Lack DA, Wyatt CE, Murray V. Impact of natural disasters on cancer care: a systematic review. Lancet Oncol. 2018; 19 (9): e482-e499. doi: 10.1016/S1470-2045(18)30412-1
- Turner MC, Anderson Zedge, Baccarilli A, et al. Outdoor air pollution and cancer: an overview of current evidence and public health recommendations. CA Cancer J Clin. 2020; 10.3322/caac.21632. doi: 10.3322/caac.21632
from San Jose News Bulletin https://sjnewsbulletin.com/climate-change-and-evolving-threats-to-public-health-the-role-of-the-oncology-nurse/
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