A specialist in HIV infection and cancer, doc. MUDr. Jozef Šuvada, took part in an international scientific conference of the Slovak Catholic charity in the autumn on climate change and its effects on people’s lives and development projects. So how does this young doctor and educator, active in both Slovakia and Uganda, view the consequences of global warming?

Jozef Šuvada studied medicine and theology, defended a doctorate in tropical medicine, and became an associate professor last year. In his work, he focuses on pediatric oncology, congenital tumor syndromes, infections (especially HIV infection), tropical medicine, and not least palliative care medicine, which connects both of his specialties. In addition to clinical work, he teaches students of healthcare and social work in Slovakia and in Uganda. This exceptional doctor and his colleagues managed to register an international healthcare association (Health Initiatives Association, HIA Slovakia), whose task is to expand education and the provision of health and social care for people with limited opportunities, especially orphans—the ones who live on the margins of society.

Vulnerability to infections due to the impacts of climate change Jozef Šuvada works in Slovakia, but also over the long term in developing countries. There, he sees every day not only the effects of climate change (for example, hunger caused by factors such as soil erosion, drying water sources, deforestation, pollution of watercourses, consumption of toxic products, and the resulting decline in fish), but especially the urgent need to develop measures to mitigate climate change’s impact on population health and child development. This young doctor most often deals with treatment of children who have become orphans because their parents were taken away by AIDS, natural, or social disasters. People on the African continent often live in an environment already altered by the negative effects of the issues discussed—frequent storms, disappearance of the typical rainy season, and extreme droughts. These extremes deprive children and adults of a roof over their heads, and soil-quality changes together with the discharge of toxic substances into water deprive them of natural sources of livelihood. They then migrate from the countryside to the city, often ending up on the streets—in socially pathological settings where their condition is further worsened by poor-quality food. Thus, they become more susceptible to infections.

“Health is the highest value by which a person judges the quality of life. Health is affected by many factors we cannot influence (the consequences of injuries and disabilities, paralysis, or Alzheimer’s disease). But there is also a lot of evidence of a direct or indirect relationship between infections and the external environment. Whether we approach the environment actively or passively will be felt by the next generations—our children and their children,” says doctor Jozef Šuvada.

It is important to build a sense of responsibility “Teachers in schools, lecturers in development education (as the SKCH team does) should emphasize building a sense of responsibility in young people—for their health and the environment around us,” reflects the oncology and HIV infection specialist. During many work visits in European countries, Jozef Šuvada encountered various initiatives aimed at improving the environment and mitigating climate change. It was, however, significantly worse in areas of sub-Saharan Africa, South America, and Central Asia, where this topic is often only discussed marginally, or even completely downplayed, because poverty and serious economic and social problems are pressing.

In response to the question of what people in Slovakia can do to soften the effects of global warming, Jozef Šuvada points to the role of the closest surroundings, especially the family: “Just as each of us had irreplaceable roles growing up in our families, so too, in the fight against the worsening impacts of climate change on human health, each one of us can do a great deal. This is the path of individual people who make up our society—whether politicians, media, healthcare or educational professionals and workers, the third sector, or young people engaged in active volunteering. Everything depends only on us and on our approach.”

Commitments and plans in 2013 This year, Jozef Šuvada together with his colleagues is launching a new HIV project on the African continent, aimed at people in marginalized parts of society whom climate change affects most. He also wanted to launch an oncology and preventive education program in developing countries: “A national educational project on palliative care for HIV/AIDS patients and oncology patients should be part of this program in Uganda, Argentina, and Kyrgyzstan (a children’s program for HIV-positive children). AIDS is not a problem only on the distant African continent. Indeed, in Kyrgyzstan a few years ago, the number of HIV-infected people increased due to blood transfusions with insufficiently screened, infected blood.”

In implementing these demanding healthcare projects, Jozef Šuvada’s team of male and female collaborators receives support from official government institutions through various grant schemes. But much more important is (especially for the population of Slovakia) public support for development cooperation, as well as education in health and the factors that influence it. This includes the prevention of advanced oncological diseases and the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases. What is important, however, according to this admirable doctor and educator, is “to raise awareness that a patient in the final, incurable stage of disease can die with dignity and without pain even in a home setting (and therefore one does not need to resort to unethical ideas and euthanasia). This is truly a challenge for Slovakia…”

Text: Božena Baluchová, Foto: archív Jozefa Šuvadu An excerpt from this article was published in the magazine Charita 4/2012.