STOCKEXCHANGE.EU Research Journal
ISSN: 2979-3769 | Volume 2, Issue 1

ABSTRACT

Background

Climate change is an increasingly important public health challenge, with consequences extending across physical and mental health, infectious diseases, nutrition, occupational health, displacement, and the capacity of health systems to maintain essential services. However, important challenges remain in translating recognition of climate-related health risks into operational preparedness, coordinated governance, and equitable adaptation. This study assessed perceived climate-related health impacts, public health-system challenges, and climate-health policy gaps across the United Kingdom (UK), European Union (EU), United States (US), and Canada.

Methods

A cross-sectional mixed-methods design was used, combining a survey of 300 participants with semi-structured interviews involving 30 stakeholders. Survey participants were recruited using a stratified convenience sampling approach across the four geographical settings and included members of the general population, health professionals, public health officials, and NGO/community workers. The questionnaire comprised 35 items covering climate-sensitive health outcomes, public health-system challenges, and climate-health policy perceptions. Internal consistency of the instrument was reported as good (Cronbach’s α=0.82). The qualitative component used purposive sampling and included 10 clinicians, 10 public health experts, and 10 policymakers. Interview data were analysed thematically, with 20% of transcripts double-coded and a reported Cohen’s κ of 0.78. Quantitative and qualitative findings were integrated during interpretation.

Results

Heat-related illness and mortality were the most frequently reported climate-sensitive health concern (72%), followed by cardiorespiratory morbidity associated with pollution and wildfire smoke (68%) and mental-health impacts (63%). Vector-borne diseases were identified by 54% of respondents and water- or food-borne diseases by 47%. Important system-level challenges included gaps in climate-health risk communication (64%), fragmented climate-health surveillance (61%), weak intersectoral coordination (59%), inadequate climate-resilient infrastructure (57%), inequitable impacts or access (55%), and insufficient emergency preparedness or surge capacity (52%). Overall, 58% of respondents perceived climate-health integration as partial or symbolic rather than operational. Stakeholder interviews reinforced these findings, highlighting interconnected climate-health risks, preparedness and system-capacity constraints, governance and implementation gaps, health inequities, mental-health consequences, and the importance of community adaptation and communication.

Conclusions

Climate change should be addressed as both an environmental threat and a health-system resilience challenge. The findings support a transition from fragmented or reactive responses toward integrated climate-health preparedness incorporating surveillance and early-warning systems, climate-resilient infrastructure, workforce capacity, intersectoral governance, health equity, mental-health support, community engagement, sustainable financing, integrated data systems, and measurable outcomes. Although the use of convenience and purposive sampling and the cross-sectional design limits generalizability and causal inference, the convergence of quantitative and qualitative findings provides evidence for strengthening operational, equitable, and accountable climate-health policy across the UK, EU, US, and Canada.

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