ABSTRACT:
Climate services require appropriate engagement between the recipient of the service and its provider, along with an effective access mechanism to enable timely action. Climate services help decision makers prepare for the impacts of extreme weather. National and international mechanisms exist to support collaboration between health systems and national meteorological agencies but progress has been slow. We reviewed the current use of climate information in public health activities in relation to the management of water-related diseases, particularly diarrhoeal diseases and cholera. We reviewed the use of daily weather forecasts, extreme weather alerts, sub-seasonal and seasonal forecasts. We used interviews and publicly available policy documents and public health guidance for the 8 countries in our AWARE consortium: India, Indonesia, South Africa, Nepal, Vietnam, Taiwan, US and the UK. We found that most countries have public health preparedness plans for flood and heatwave warnings to prevent diarrhoeal disease morbidity, and several have developed climate and health collaborations. There has been little evaluation of the use of climate information. The burden of diarrheal disease continues to be a major public health threat in resource limited settings. Both sporadic cases and outbreaks can be triggered by extreme weather events, but evidence, particularly for the effect of rainfall extremes, varies by settings. Local knowledge may not be effectively translated to support preparedness activities at the community level. The development and implementation of climate/weather-informed early warning system is urgently needed to enhance community resilience to the threat of climate mediated disease risks.