One in 12 hospitals across the globe are at risk of total or partial shutdown from extreme climate-driven events without a rapid phase-out of polluting fossil fuels, according to a report released on Saturday by Cross Dependency Initiative (XDI).
A total of 16,245 hospitals could be at high risk by the end of the century, twice as many as are currently in this category, the climate risk analyst noted. It added that a residential or commercial building with this level of risk would be considered uninsurable.
Dr Karl Mallon, director of science and technology at XDI, said “climate change is increasingly impacting the health of people.” Without a change in pace, there is a concerning possibility of the risks to global health being exacerbated further, he mentioned.
Lower- And Middle-Income Countries At Greater Risk
Lately, the raging climate emergency has been triggering extreme weather events of higher intensity and frequency. Although some of the hospitals can be adapted to face the consequences, many will have to be moved at great expense.
Climate breakdown is known to have disproportionate impacts on lower- and middle-income countries, where 71% of the hospitals at risk by the end of the century are located. Currently, south-east Asia has the highest percentage of hospitals at risk of damage.
XDI has released the names and locations of all hospitals at risk and is calling on governments across the globe to check health facilities in their region to shield them from harm. It is clear now that climate change threatens to undermine the stability of health systems.
Report Arrives Before First-Ever Health Day At A COP
Highlighting the need to ensure the ongoing delivery of critical services, Dr Mallon said: “For individual governments not to take action on this information, or for the global community not to support governments in need, is blatant disregard for the well-being of their citizens.”
The report arrived before the first-ever Health Day at a COP. On Saturday, more than 40 million health professionals joined the call to action by the World Health Organisation and civil society organisations to prioritise health in climate negotiations at COP28 Dubai.
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The Summit marked an early success on its first day as participants reached a historic agreement to operationalise the Loss and Damage Fund, in an effort to compensate developing countries for the damaging effects of climate-driven events.
