Resilience and adaptation of public healthcare centers to climate change in Northern Jordan.

Authors

Rami Saadeh, Mays Alghizzawi, Mohammed Z Allouh

Published in

BMC primary care. Jul 13, 2026. Epub Jul 13, 2026.

Abstract

Climate change (CC) is a global phenomenon significantly influenced by human activities. As CC-related hazards are increasing rapidly, effective adaptation and resilience measures are urgently needed to manage these hazards. The purpose of this study is to assess the resilience and adaptation of healthcare centers (HCs) in Northern Jordan to CC-related hazards.
An explanatory mixed-method design was employed in this study, using a structured closed-ended questionnaire and an interview guide. The questionnaire consisted of seven sections: baseline characteristics of centers; risk recognition; service delivery; workforce; water, sanitation, and healthcare waste management; infrastructure; and energy. A convenience sampling approach was used to collect quantitative data from 67 HCs in 4 governorates. Further, a purposive sample of 15 HCs' directors were interviewed to collect qualitative data.
Climate resilience of HCs in Northern Jordan was significantly low. The percentage of HCs with high resilience levels was only 16.4% (n = 11), including eight comprehensive HCs and three primary HCs. The percentages of HCs with high resilience levels for (1) risk recognition, (2) service delivery, (3) workforce, (4) water, sanitation, and healthcare waste management, (5) infrastructure, and (6) energy were 13.4%, 50.7%, 31.3%, 37.3%, 14.9%, and 9%, respectively. Three main themes were identified from the interviews: (1) perceptions of climate change and its health impacts, (2) the role of HCs in addressing climate change, and (3) challenges and constraints in enhancing climate change resilience.
This study identified significant gaps in HCs' resilience to climate-related risks. Key weaknesses were observed in energy supply, risk recognition, and infrastructure. Some strengths were identified, particularly in service delivery. There is a pressing need for multisectoral cooperation, climate-related legislation, and training initiatives to improve adaptiveness and build a resilient healthcare system.

PMID:
42443763
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 14 Jul 2026.

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