PESHAWAR: Experts have expressed concern about the increasing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and called for coordinated steps to cope with the climatic situation to bring improvement in public health scenario.

They expressed these views while speaking at the 5th International Public Health Conference, which began at the Khyber Medical University on Wednesday.

The conference opened with a dynamic plenary session on NCDs.

KMU Vice-Chancellor Prof Ziaul Haq delivered a keynote address on `the role of lifestyle medicine in handling the pandemic of NCDs.` He stressed that the global burden of NCDs could no longer be managed without prioritising prevention through behaviour change, communitylevelinterventions, and a shift in medical education toward lifestyle medicine.

Prof Abdul Jalil Khan, director family medicine at KMU, called for adopting scalable primary healthcare models that were sensitive to the needs of low-and-middle-income countries.

Dr Munaira Abbasi, a US-based physician, spoke on `combatingNCDs: the role of lifestyle medicine in public health`, emphasising the urgent need for clinicians to adopt a preventive and holistic approach, highlighting how clinical care must intersect with public health initiatives to combat rising NCD trends.

A panel discussion followed, featuring Unicef`s Dr Bilal Imtiaz, WHO`s Dr Fawad Khan, Dr Mohammad Khalil Akhtar and Prof Ziaul Haq.

The panel collectively identified the urgent need to scale up NCD prevention efforts through multisectoralapproaches.

Dr Imtiaz emphasised adolescent health and early intervention as essentialto halting the generational cycle of NCDs.

Dr Ziaul Haq reiterated the importance of political will and policy coherence across sectors.

Findings shared during this session noted that over 60% of Pakistan`s disease burden stems from NCDs and those interventions such as digital health tools, lifestyle education, and early diagnosis remain underutilised.

The afternoon session shifted focus to the climate change and health nexus, with keynote speaker Dr Jai Das, Associate Professor at Aga Khan University, delivering a presentation on `the climate-health nexus: impact, shaping adaptation and resilience`.

Dr Das underscored the compounding impact of climate change on vulnerable populations, including women, children, and the urban poor.

He called for integrated national policies that address environmental sustainability and public health in tandem, warning thatfailure to act now would undo decades of public health progress.

Dr Maria Ishaq Khattak of KMU presented her research on `understanding climate change and health vulnerability: socioeconomic incentives for climate resilience among informal sector workers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa`. Her findings shed light on the increased susceptibility of informal workers to climate-induced health risks such as heat stress, waterborne illnesses, and respiratory infections.

She emphasised the role of social protection, health insurance, and targeted adaptation schemes to reduce climate-related health inequities in low-income communities.

The panel discussion that followed emphasised the importance of early warning systems, climateresilientinfrastructure, and crossdepartmental coordination among health, environment, and disaster management sectors.

Parallel plenary sessions added diverse perspectives to the day.

The session on `strengthening primary healthcare through the family practice approach` focused on revitalising Pakistan`s primary healthcare system through the integration of family medicine.

Experts emphasised that trained family physicians were essential for ensuring accessible, equitable, and continuous care.

Discussions included strategies for deploying physicians at the community level, integrating digital health technologies, and building sustainable support systems to achieve Universal Health Coverage.