Public Health Crises from Floods in Pakistan: Climate Risks, Health Outcomes, and Pathways to Resilience

Abstract

Pakistan's increasing vulnerability to climate-induced flooding presents a severe public health challenge, with devastating consequences for population health. The literature based research highlights the public health crisis, damages and climate risk associated with flood. For the purpose, the research examines the 49 peer reviewed studies to assess the health risks associated with flood. For the purpose, the search strategy included Google Scholar, Web of Science, Science Direct, Scopus to gather the appropriate data, whereas, the non-relevant data were excluded from the strategies. The analysis reveals three critical health consequences: (1) acute physical trauma and drowning incidents during flood events, (2) secondary outbreaks of waterborne (cholera, hepatitis E) and vector-borne (dengue, malaria) diseases in post-flood periods, and (3) chronic mental health conditions among displaced populations. Besides that, the psychological, mental, social impacts were deemed to be the observed due to the flood. Particularly affected are marginalized communities with limited access to healthcare, proper sanitation, and stable housing. The findings highlight systemic weaknesses in disaster preparedness, including inadequate medical supply chains, insufficient emergency healthcare infrastructure, and fragmented disease surveillance systems. These results argue for comprehensive policy reforms that combine climate adaptation strategies with strengthened public health systems, emphasizing community-based preparedness programs and targeted protection for high-risk groups. Therefore, the study recommends the policies for mitigating the flood related diseases as well as preparedness before flood for the sustainable development.