Outline The Health Concerns Related To Global Climate Change

Research has proven that over the past 100 years, the average temperature of the Earth has risen approximately 1 degree Fahrenheit (1°F), increasing at a rate twice as fast as noted for any period in the last 1000 years (Afzal, 2007). Global warming is happening, climate change is occurring and the health effects of climate change will necessitate an informed response by health care professionals. Global warming results from destruction of the ozone layer of the atmosphere and consequent warming of the earth’s surface (Friedman, 2013). The purpose of this paper outline the health concerns related to global climate change, including health promotion and health protection that a Bachelor’s of Science (BSN)-prepared nurse could implement.

Health concerns related to global climate change

Many of us in the health science field agree the environment is under threat due to the effects of climate change. Nurses see

This would lessen global warming over this century and beyond. Researchers predict the earlier we cut overall emissions into the air, the sooner the benefits would be noticed (www.cambridge.org, n.d.). Leiserowitz (2005) found respondents in the United States felt climate change is a more global concern than local concern. The study also showed the effects of climate change will vary by region and population, but there are still regions throughout the United States where the population feels they will not be affected by global change. More education is needed to help everyone understand their level of global change in the future. The same respondents were more likely to agree that nursing actions could decrease health-related impacts of climate change. Education and prevention were the top actions expected from the nursing field to address health impacts of climate change (Leiserowitz,