[Responsibilities of the German public health service with regard to environmental medicine].
In 1999, the Special Committee for Environmental Medicine affiliated to the Federal Association of Doctors in the German public health service, prepared a consensus paper on the latter's request entitled "Environmental medicine in the public health service -- a social role and its consequences: propositions with regard to the situation, aims, strategies, and opportunities for action". The propositions provide guidelines to public health departments for implementing the "Environment and Health" action programme launched by the Federal Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Federal Ministry of Health. Joint action by health and environmental authorities on the municipal, state and federal levels is considered essential. Furthermore, the comprehensive knowledge and expertise available within the public health service, including its in-depth knowledge of local and regional environmental pollution, should be further utilized in order to clarify cause and effect relationships and to initiate necessary action for minimizing any imminent risks. Environment-related public health protection is one of the major responsibilities of the public health departments within their general responsibility to provide public health care and ensure disease prevention. Doctors in private practices specializing in environmental medicine and public health departments' counselling centres for environmental medicine work closely together in terms of patient care and citizens' counselling in order to identify potential causes of environment-related health problems in the population. They issue recommendations on how to live a healthy life. Furthermore, they utilize available data and information for health policy directions. In this regard, health and environmental findings provide an important basis for an appropriate response to current developments based on the correct assessment of a particular situation, and for raising public awareness of preventive measures.
Thriene
B
B
Landesamt für Verbraucherschutz Sachsen-Anhalt. Bernd.Thriene@md.lav.ms.lsa-net.de
Oppermann
H
H
D004782:Environmental Health; D019550:Environmental Medicine; D004787:Environmental Pollution / Q000517:prevention & control; D005062:European Union; D005858:Germany; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D015980:Public Health Practice; D012307:Risk Factors