Opinion: ‘Climate change has infiltrated my medical practice. I have no choice but to respond'

Montreal Gazette

20 hours ago

As a physician, I'm alarmed that there has been little in the way of substantive input from senior authorities in Canada, and particularly in Quebec, about climate-related health risks. Since the start of summer, I've given more than 20 interviews about the health risks caused by extreme heat and wildfire smoke, both symptoms of the climate crisis.
During the weekend of July 26-27, Environment Canada issued dual heat and air-quality warnings for the Montreal area and a large part of Quebec, and I was once again asked to speak to the media. I found myself wondering, where are our government leaders?
I regularly address the media about these topics. I believe it's essential to clearly identify and raise awareness about the health impacts of the climate change crisis, which are still far too often overlooked in public discourse. I also wrote a book on the subject.
Why do I do this? Because of duty. Climate change has infiltrated my medical practice. I have no choice but to respond.
Late last month, while I was on call at a Montreal hospital, two elderly patients were admitted with heat-related complications. Paramedics had rescued them from apartments where the indoor temperature hovered around 30 Celsius — true ovens.
I've long been used to reviewing treatment plans for patients with lung disease during cold and flu season. But now, I also have to do it during the summer because of wildfire smoke.
I hesitate to draw comparisons with the COVID-19 pandemic because these are very different crises. However, one thing stands out. Beginning in spring 2020 and for weeks, there were daily official media briefings, often featuring Quebec's premier, health minister and director of public health.
Yet, when extreme weather rolls through our summers, the response is nothing like that. Where are government officials while our lungs are choking on wildfire smoke? Why aren't they addressing the estimated 470 people who die from heat each summer in Quebec? Radio silence.
During the height of the pandemic, they showed up every day to explain what was happening, what steps to take and what services were available. We got more than a social media infographic. Yet, the silence surrounding climate-related health risks sends a message that these issues aren't important, that they don't count and that they're inevitable. Nothing could be further from the truth.
In politics, accountability can take many forms, but leadership, public presence and clear recognition of the problem are good places to start. Addressing the media and, through them, the public is part of the job. When it comes to climate-driven health challenges, it's time for more robust ministerial responsibility. Even during the summer vacation period.
The science is crystal clear: Environment Canada's increasingly frequent warnings are a direct result of our collective failure to take meaningful climate action, of our continued dependence on fossil fuels, and of premiers who still support the building of pipelines.
In the face of all this, we must break the silence. Every level of government must connect the dots between climate and health in public statements and in policy. We need political recognition that meets the scale of the crisis, just as the International Court of Justice recently affirmed.
Only then can we make better collective choices to protect everyone's health.