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Dear fellow Green+Leaders,
As health professionals, we are witnessing firsthand the deleterious impacts of climate change on the health of our patients and clients. Last summer, we treated patients in respiratory distress due to wildfire smoke. We cared for vulnerable patients affected by a heat dome that led to the death of 570 individuals. This change in climate and ecosystems has an impact on crop failure, habitat loss, and water scarcity. In September, over 230 medical journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine, the Lancet, and the CMAJ published a joint editorial calling for emergency action to limit global temperature increases, restore biodiversity, and protect health.
On November 4th, 2021, a group of physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals will be gathering in front of the BC Legislature in Victoria to highlight the urgent need for action on this climate and ecological crisis. Guest speakers will be explaining why the climate and ecological crisis is a health emergency. Our MLA’s from across the political spectrum are aware of climate change, however on this day we want to underscore the urgency of this issue and present them with our petition.
For further reading on this topic:
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Atwoli L. et al. Call for emergency action to limit global temperature increases, restore biodiversity, and protect health: wealthy nations must do much more, much faster (2021). Available here.
To join us, check out Code Red BC for more information. We hope to see you on November 4th, 2021 at 11:30 a.m. at BC Legislature, Victoria.
Dr. Rashmi Chadha
On behalf of Doctors for Planetary Health - West Coast
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