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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Health Policy
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1506120
This article is part of the Research Topic Climate-Related System Failures and Emerging Public Health Vulnerabilities View all articles

"We are not ready for this": Physicians' perceptions on climate change information and adaptation strategies -Qualitative Study in Portugal

Provisionally accepted
Nidia Ponte Nidia Ponte 1,2*Fátima Alves Fátima Alves 1,2,3Diogo Guedes Vidal Diogo Guedes Vidal 1,2
  • 1 Center for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
  • 2 Department of Social Sciences and Management, Universidade Aberta, Lisbon, Portugal
  • 3 Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública Sergio Arouca, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (Fiocruz), Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Climate change presents several challenges to public health and its professionals. This article aims to fill a significant gap in the current literature by understanding physicians' perceptions of their role in educating others about health adaptation to climate change. It also explores their knowledge of health policies related to this issue in Portugal and their perceived influence on the development of adaptation policies at both local and national levels within the health sector.To this end, we applied a qualitative and case study approach, interviewing 13 physicians in Portugal, including general practitioners and specialists. The data was collected using a semistructured interview script, and a content analysis was performed to categorize the responses and gain a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon.The main results of this study highlight the need for a more systematic approach to training physicians, including the relationship between climate change and health. Concerning policies, this research highlights the need for more consistent communication and precise guidelines for dealing with the impacts of climate change on public health.As the first exploratory study focusing on Portuguese physicians, this research provides unique insights into their views on the potential to influence patient behavior and health policy. Importantly, it offers valuable recommendations for health policy strategies, particularly in awareness-raising and training plans for these professionals, thereby demonstrating the research's practical implications.

    Keywords: Climate Change and Health1, Public Health Policy2, Physician Perception3, Healthcare Professionals4, Climate Resilience5, Health Vulnerabilities6, Health Adaptation Strategies7

    Received: 04 Oct 2024; Accepted: 04 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Ponte, Alves and Vidal. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Nidia Ponte, Center for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.