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The following is a summary of “Frontline clinic perspectives on climate change, human health, and resilience: a national cross-sectional survey,” published in the November 2024 issue of Primary Care by Wiskel et al. 

Frontline clinics primarily serve low-income and socially disadvantaged communities and are facing increasing impacts from extreme climate events. 

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to evaluate staff perspectives at frontline clinics on climate change health risks, extreme event impacts, and motivators to improve resilience. 

They conducted a national, cross-sectional survey of staff at frontline clinics, including administrators, case workers, and providers across the US. The survey assessed clinic attributes, knowledge of climate change health risks, preferences for educational resources, and impacts on clinic and patient resilience. It was distributed electronically to a convenience sample of primary care clinics and through listservs of the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) and the National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics (NAFC). Data was collected from September to November 2021, with responses gathered via Qualtrics and analyzed using Stata. 

The results showed that 430 surveys were completed in clinics in 43 states. Most (82.0%) respondents linked climate change to human activities, and 52.8% reported operational disruptions from extreme events in the past 3 years. Over half (54.4%) had plans for extreme event risks, with checklists and planning guidance identified as key resources. While 84.4% of providers and case workers saw climate change impacting patient health, only 36.2% discussed it with patients due to time and priority constraints. Additionally, 55.7% were motivated to learn ways to help patients prepare for extreme events. 

Investigators found that climate-related extreme events impacted both patient health and clinic operations. Addressing knowledge gaps and providing educational resources motivated improvements in clinics and patient resilience to climate change. 

Source: bmcprimcare.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12875-024-02622-y