Bringing climate health conversations to frontline clinics: A qualitative post-intervention assessment of utilization of the Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit

Introduction: Community health centers and clinics are on the frontlines of climate change and adverse health effects, providing essential care to millions of low-income, uninsured, and underinsured populations across the country. The Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit (“the toolkit”)...

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Main Authors: Yi-Ting Hana Lee, Mingyue Ma, Caroline Sarpy, Casey Dai, Jinia Sarkar, Chelsea Heberlein, Theodore Miles, Caleb J. Dresser
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-05-01
Series:The Journal of Climate Change and Health
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667278225000276
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author Yi-Ting Hana Lee
Mingyue Ma
Caroline Sarpy
Casey Dai
Jinia Sarkar
Chelsea Heberlein
Theodore Miles
Caleb J. Dresser
author_facet Yi-Ting Hana Lee
Mingyue Ma
Caroline Sarpy
Casey Dai
Jinia Sarkar
Chelsea Heberlein
Theodore Miles
Caleb J. Dresser
author_sort Yi-Ting Hana Lee
collection DOAJ
description Introduction: Community health centers and clinics are on the frontlines of climate change and adverse health effects, providing essential care to millions of low-income, uninsured, and underinsured populations across the country. The Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit (“the toolkit”) was developed to support frontline clinicians in preparing for climate-related health risks. The objectives of this study were to assess the utilization and challenges in the implementation of the toolkit in real-world clinic settings and to guide further development of clinic-based risk reduction resources. Methods: A qualitative, semi-structured interview and post-intervention assessment approach was used to interview 28 clinicians and staff from 15 clinics across six states. Results: Participants generally found the toolkit valuable, noting that it addressed an unmet need by providing actionable information on climate health risks in resource-constrained settings. However, challenges included information overload, the complexity of patient-facing materials, and concerns about literacy barriers. Many participants felt that the toolkit could benefit from more concise and visually supported materials, as well as adjustments to better align with patient literacy levels. Discussion: These findings highlight the importance of tailoring resources to the specific needs of frontline clinics and their patient populations. Future research should examine the long-term impacts of integrating such resources on patient behaviors and health outcomes and explore strategies for integrating climate resilience into routine clinical care.
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spelling doaj-art-0f522e48df5544f29ef9fd1d577ceecc2025-08-20T03:31:53ZengElsevierThe Journal of Climate Change and Health2667-27822025-05-012310044410.1016/j.joclim.2025.100444Bringing climate health conversations to frontline clinics: A qualitative post-intervention assessment of utilization of the Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics ToolkitYi-Ting Hana Lee0Mingyue Ma1Caroline Sarpy2Casey Dai3Jinia Sarkar4Chelsea Heberlein5Theodore Miles6Caleb J. Dresser7Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USADepartment of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USADepartment of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USADepartment of Global Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USADepartment of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USADepartment of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USAAmericares Foundation, Stamford, CT, USADepartment of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA; Corresponding author at: Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Rosenberg Building 2nd Floor 1 Deaconess Rd, Boston, MA 02215.Introduction: Community health centers and clinics are on the frontlines of climate change and adverse health effects, providing essential care to millions of low-income, uninsured, and underinsured populations across the country. The Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit (“the toolkit”) was developed to support frontline clinicians in preparing for climate-related health risks. The objectives of this study were to assess the utilization and challenges in the implementation of the toolkit in real-world clinic settings and to guide further development of clinic-based risk reduction resources. Methods: A qualitative, semi-structured interview and post-intervention assessment approach was used to interview 28 clinicians and staff from 15 clinics across six states. Results: Participants generally found the toolkit valuable, noting that it addressed an unmet need by providing actionable information on climate health risks in resource-constrained settings. However, challenges included information overload, the complexity of patient-facing materials, and concerns about literacy barriers. Many participants felt that the toolkit could benefit from more concise and visually supported materials, as well as adjustments to better align with patient literacy levels. Discussion: These findings highlight the importance of tailoring resources to the specific needs of frontline clinics and their patient populations. Future research should examine the long-term impacts of integrating such resources on patient behaviors and health outcomes and explore strategies for integrating climate resilience into routine clinical care.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667278225000276Climate resilienceFrontline clinics
spellingShingle Yi-Ting Hana Lee
Mingyue Ma
Caroline Sarpy
Casey Dai
Jinia Sarkar
Chelsea Heberlein
Theodore Miles
Caleb J. Dresser
Bringing climate health conversations to frontline clinics: A qualitative post-intervention assessment of utilization of the Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit
The Journal of Climate Change and Health
Climate resilience
Frontline clinics
title Bringing climate health conversations to frontline clinics: A qualitative post-intervention assessment of utilization of the Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit
title_full Bringing climate health conversations to frontline clinics: A qualitative post-intervention assessment of utilization of the Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit
title_fullStr Bringing climate health conversations to frontline clinics: A qualitative post-intervention assessment of utilization of the Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit
title_full_unstemmed Bringing climate health conversations to frontline clinics: A qualitative post-intervention assessment of utilization of the Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit
title_short Bringing climate health conversations to frontline clinics: A qualitative post-intervention assessment of utilization of the Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit
title_sort bringing climate health conversations to frontline clinics a qualitative post intervention assessment of utilization of the climate resilience for frontline clinics toolkit
topic Climate resilience
Frontline clinics
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667278225000276
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