New IHACC Publication! Understanding weather and hospital admissions patterns to inform climate change adaptation strategies in the healthcare sector in Uganda

Citation:

Bishop-Williams K.E., Berrang-Ford, L., Sargeant, J., Pearl, D.L., Lwasa, S., Namanya, D.B., Edge, V.E., Cunsolo, A., IHACC Research Team, Bwindi Community Hospital, Huang, Y., Ford, J., Garcia, P., Harper, S.L. (2018) Understanding weather and hospital admissions patterns to inform climate change adaptation strategies in the healthcare sector in Uganda. Int Journal Environ Res Public Health 15(11): 2402.

Abstract

Background: Season and weather are associated with many health outcomes, which can influence hospital admission rates. We examined associations between hospital admissions (all diagnoses) and local meteorological parameters in Southwestern Uganda, with the aim of supporting hospital planning and preparedness in the context of climate change. 

Methods: Hospital admissions data and meteorological data were collected from Bwindi Community Hospital and a satellite database of weather conditions, respectively (2011 to 2014). Descriptive statistics were used to describe admission patterns. A mixed-effects Poisson regression model was fitted to investigate associations between hospital admissions and season, precipitation, and temperature.
 
Results: Admission counts were highest for acute respiratory infections, malaria, and acute gastrointestinal illness, which are climate-sensitive diseases. Hospital admissions were 1.16 (95% CI: 1.04, 1.31; p = 0.008) times higher during extreme high temperatures (i.e., >95th percentile) on the day of admission. Hospital admissions association with season depended on year; admissions were higher in the dry season than the rainy season every year, except for 2014. 

Discussion: Effective adaptation strategy characteristics include being low-cost and quick and practical to implement at local scales. Herein, we illustrate how analyzing hospital data alongside meteorological parameters may inform climate-health planning in low-resource contexts.

New Publication! Participatory Scenario Planning for Climate Change

IHACC PhD student Melanie Flynn recently published an article in Environmental Science & Policy. Melanie conducted a systematic review of the literature to identify and evaluate how participatory scenario planning has been used in the Arctic. Congrats Mel!

CITATION: Flynn, M., Ford, J., Pearce, T., and Harper, S.L. (2018). Participatory scenario planning and climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability research in the Arctic. Environmental Science & Policy. 79:45–53.

ABSTRACT: Participatory scenario planning (PSP) approaches are increasingly being used in research on climate change impacts, adaptation, and vulnerability (IAV). We identify and evaluate how PSP has been used in IAV studies in the Arctic, reviewing work published in the peer-reviewed and grey literature (n = 43). Studies utilizing PSP commonly follow the stages recognized as ‘best practice’ in the general literature in scenario planning, engaging with multiple ways of knowing including western science and traditional knowledge, and are employed in a diversity of sectors. Community participation, however, varies between studies, and climate projections are only utilized in just over half of the studies reviewed, raising concern that important future drivers of change are not fully captured. The time required to conduct PSP, involving extensive community engagement, was consistently reported as a challenge, and for application in Indigenous communities requires careful consideration of local culture, values, and belief systems on what it means to prepare for future climate impacts.

Food system vulnerability amidst the extreme 2010–2011 flooding in the Peruvian Amazon: a case study from the Ucayali region

Sherman, M., Ford, J.D., Llanos-Cuentas, A., José Valdivia, M., and IHACC Research Group (2016) Food system vulnerability amidst the extreme 2010–2011 flooding in the Peruvian Amazon: a case study from the Ucayali region. Food Security, 8(37), 1-20. Abstract:

Projections of climate change indicate an increase in the frequency and intensity of climatic hazards such as flooding and droughts, increasing the importance of understanding community vulnerability to extreme hydrological events. This research was conducted in the flood-prone indigenous community of Panaillo, located in the Ucayali region of the Peruvian Amazon, examining how the 2010–2011 flooding affected the food system at community and institutional levels. Drawing upon in-depth fieldwork using participatory research methods over multiple seasons—including semi-structured interviews (n = 74), focus groups, and seasonal food security calendar and historical timeline exercises—the flooding was documented to have created several opportunities for increased fishing and agricultural production in Panaillo. However, households lacked the resources to fully exploit the opportunities presented by the extreme conditions and increasingly turned to migration as a coping mechanism. International aid organizations were drawn to Ucayali in response to the flooding, and introduced additional programming and provided capacity-building sessions for local institutions. However, local institutions remain weak and continue to generally disregard the increasing magnitude and frequency of extremes, documented in the region over the last decade. Moreover, the long-term implications of community-level and institutional responses to the extreme flooding could increase food system vulnerability in the future. This case study highlights the importance of considering both slow and fast drivers of food system vulnerability in the aftermath of an extreme hydrological event.

New paper led by PhD Candidate Blanaid Donnelly on the prevalence and risk factors of Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasitemia among Indigenous Batwa and non-Indigenous communities of Kanungu District, Uganda published in Malaria Journal

A new IHACC article on prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasitemia among Indigenous Batwa and non-Indigenous communities in Uganda was recently published in Malaria Journal. The publication can be found here.

Donnelly, B., L. Berrang-Ford, J. Labbe, S. Twesigomwe, S. Lwasa, B.D. Namanya, S.L. Harper, M. Kulkarni, N.A. Ross, IHACC Research Team, and P. Michel (2016) Prevalence and risk factors of Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasitemia among Indigenous Batwa and non-Indigenous communities of Kanungu District, Uganda. Malaria Journal 15:254.

New paper led by IHACC student Sierra Clark on longitudinal analysis of mosquito net ownership and use in an Indigenous Batwa Population after a targeted distribution published in PLoS ONE

A new IHACC article on mosquito net retention among Batwa was recently published in PLoS ONE. Using a longitudinal approach, Clark et al. 2016 explored the rate of mosquito net retention after an IHACC targeted distribution event among 10 Batwa communities in Kanungu District southwestern Uganda. The results indicate that net non-ownership was high among the Batwa, particularly within the first 3-months following the distribution. Mass targeted distribution campaigns aim to reduce inequities in mosquito net ownership among different socio-economic groups. However, our data showed that amongst the Batwa, household socio-economic status determined retention of nets after the distribution and inequities in ownership increased over-time, disadvantaging the poorest households. This research implies that retention of freely distributed LLINs, particularly for impoverished populations, may remain subject to patterning by socioeconomic gradients. More effective longitudinal monitoring and evaluation programs are needed to assess the long-term impact of free LLIN distributions, particularly among the most vulnerable populations. The article can be viewed here.

Clark S, Berrang-Ford L, Lwasa S, Namanya D, Twesigomwe S, IHACC Research Team, et al. (2016) A Longitudinal Analysis of Mosquito Net Ownership and Use in an Indigenous Batwa Population after a Targeted Distribution. PLoS ONE 11(5): e0154808. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0154808