ABSTRACT
Climate change is one of the major global environmental changes that will affect human beings and their urban living environment for the decades to come. Moreover, a majority of the natural disasters post-2000 are climate-related. The 21st century also marks the beginning of a global urban-based living pattern. The increased frequency of extreme weather events, the acceleration of urbanisation, and the dependency on lifeline infrastructure render the urban-based community and system vulnerable to the challenges of maintaining human well-being and minimising the potential health impact of the erratic climate change-related events. Health impacts of various climate events on individuals and health services utilisation in urban setting will continue to evolve. More scientific evidence is urgently needed to examine how health impact patterns might change and how the associated community health risk preparedness and response measures can be mounted in an evidence-supported way via both top-down and bottom-up approaches.
