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Essay
Need for global core competencies in Child Health and the Environment: a Canadian perspective
  1. Irena Buka1,
  2. Lesley Brennan1,2,
  3. Jamal Tarrabain2,
  4. Sadra Aghazadeh2,
  5. Marie Noel Brune Drisse3
  1. 1 Pediatrics, University of Alberta Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Edmonton, Canada
  2. 2 Children’s Environmental Health Clinic, Misericordia Community Hospital, Edmonton, Canada
  3. 3 WHO, Geneve, Switzerland
  1. Correspondence to Lesley Brennan, Child Health Clinic, University of Alberta, Pediatrics, 231 16930 87 Ave, Edmonton CAN T5R 4H5, Canada; lesley.brennan{at}covenanthealsklgjlnhklngpdjiith.ca

Abstract

Children are the planet’s most valuable resource. Mortality rates and longevity in children are improving; however, morbidity related to early-life exposures is increasing and with it health spending. A focus on identifying and addressing environmental components related to not only chronic childhood illnesses but also major adult mortalities would help contain current healthcare budgets. Child Health and the Environment (CHE) is an emerging discipline dedicated to managing early-life exposures (prenatal and childhood) on health outcomes throughout life. In Canada, as well as around the world, recognition of this area is growing, but progress has been slow and training of physicians is lacking. The WHO works closely with the Children’s Environmental Health Clinic in Canada as well as collaborating centres around the world to build awareness of environmental health issues and promote improved care of children. Core competencies in CHE for physicians would provide an important step forward.

  • Child health
  • environmental health
  • health education sa
  • paediatric
  • preventive medicine
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited, appropriate credit is given, any changes made indicated, and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.

https://doi.org/10.1136/jech-2019-213148

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    Footnotes

    • Contributors IB developed the paper concept, identified content and wrote the first draft. LB contributed to content and to subsequent drafts. JT and SA contributed content and reviewed drafts. MNBD critically reviewed proposal, contributed to design and content of review.

    • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Patient consent for publication Not required.

    • Provenance and peer review Commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

    • Data availability statement There are no data in this work.

    • Disclaimer The authors alone, and not their organisations, are responsible for the views and content of this article.