Building climate resilience into Trinidad and Tobago’s Healthcare System

The document outlines a 24-month readiness project to enhance the resilience of Trinidad and Tobago's health sector against climate-induced disasters. Key objectives include establishing an Incident Command System (ICS), developing an Event-Based Surveillance App for real-time disaster response, and conducting vulnerability assessments to design 'Climate SMART' healthcare facilities. The project also aims to train the healthcare workforce in disaster risk reduction and develop two high-quality project concept notes for submission to the Green Climate Fund (GCF).

• Trinidad and Tobago's health sector faces significant climate vulnerabilities, including direct impacts such as "increased deaths/injuries from heat waves" and "injury or death from flooding, landslides or hurricanes", as well as indirect impacts like an increase in "water-borne diseases, diarrhoeal diseases, vector-borne diseases".
• The healthcare system currently suffers from a "limited understanding of the relationship between the timing and types of disease and climate change", which hinders adaptation planning and the alignment of health preparedness with meteorological early warning systems.
• The project will establish an Integrated domestic incident management system, specifically by developing an action plan for the "Incident Command System (ICS) element of the MOH Comprehensive Disaster Plan".
• To improve early response to disasters, the project will design an "Event-Based Surveillance App" to provide "real-time information supplied by affected communities through App-based technology".
• The proposal includes a comprehensive assessment of the health system to identify "gaps in knowledge, attitude and capacity of Healthcare Providers" and a "vulnerability and mapping assessment" related to 28 previously identified hazards.
• The project aims to create a framework for "Climate SMART facilities", which includes building designs based on "low carbon approaches", investment in "renewable energy and energy efficiency", and resilience strategies to withstand extreme weather.
• A key output is the development of "Two concept notes which target the health sector" to be submitted to the GCF for further adaptation and mitigation funding.
• The project will provide capacity building and training for the healthcare workforce, including "Ministry representatives, community health care professionals, hospital health care professionals, pharmacists, supplier etc.", to implement disaster risk reduction measures.

APA

Green Climate Fund (2020). Building climate resilience into Trinidad and Tobago’s Healthcare System. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/building-climate-resilience-trinidad-and-tobago-s-healthcare-system.pdf

Chicago

Green Climate Fund. Building climate resilience into Trinidad and Tobago’s Healthcare System. 2020. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/building-climate-resilience-trinidad-and-tobago-s-healthcare-system.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Green Climate Fund |title=Building climate resilience into Trinidad and Tobago’s Healthcare System |date=30 December 2020 |url=https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/building-climate-resilience-trinidad-and-tobago-s-healthcare-system.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{greenclimatefund2020building, author = {{Green Climate Fund}}, title = {{Building climate resilience into Trinidad and Tobago’s Healthcare System}}, institution = {Green Climate Fund}, year = {2020}, month = dec, url = {https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/building-climate-resilience-trinidad-and-tobago-s-healthcare-system.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }