Environmental Pollution and the Role of Primary Care

Environmental pollution is one of the biggest challenges facing humanity today. With the growth of industrialization, urbanization and increasing population, there has been an exacerbation of pollution in all its forms: air, water, soil and noise pollution. This pollution has direct and indirect effects on human health, ranging from acute respiratory diseases to chronic problems such as cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Given the magnitude of the impacts of environmental pollution on human health, Primary Care plays an essential role in addressing this problem for the following reasons: 1. Proximity to the Community 2. Comprehensive Care 3. Prevention and Education 4. Early Detection and Management of Chronic Diseases To complement this review, I have conducted a survey among 220 family doctors in Spain, some linked to respiratory groups, where the attitudes and concerns of Spanish family doctors are addressed. 50% of doctors report special involvement in respiratory issues. 68.2% are women and 31.4% men. The size of the municipality where they reside is very diverse. 57.7% travel alone in their car to their health center. 81.8% totally agree that environmental pollution has effects on their health, a figure that drops to 73.6% if we refer to the effects of climate change on health, with cancer (55%), followed of respiratory diseases (34.1%) the most related to environmental pollution.