Developing a climate change vulnerability and impact assessment module as a supplement to WHO’s flexible interview for ICD-11 (FLII-11)

The impacts of climate change vary considerably among countries and within populations living in the same region. These effects can lead to job loss, displacement, and weakened social cohesion, as well as mental health sequelae, including depression and anxiety, increased rates of substance use, and suicide. Social vulnerability to climate change refers to the differential impacts of climate change on groups or individuals, influenced by social, economic, and political factors. Both direct and indirect effects of climate change have clear impacts on mental health and well-being and have disproportionate implications for socially vulnerable individuals. While various tools to assess social vulnerability exist, most measures rely on publicly available census data or require considerable adaptation to be applied in specific communities.
Additionally, existing tools do not specifically assess the interaction between climate change and social vulnerability, nor their impact on migration intentions and economic and mental well-being at the individual or community level. To address this, a Climate Change Vulnerability and Impact (CCVI) Module has been developed as a supplement to the World Health Organization's (WHO’s) Flexible Interview for ICD-11 (FLII-11), a structured diagnostic interview for use in epidemiological and other population-based and clinical studies of mental disorders. The CCVI Module assesses the impact of climate change at the household level and migration and migration intentions. Used in conjunction with the FLII-11, the CCVI Module has the potential to reveal significant associations between mental health and social vulnerability to climate change, offering new insights into this critical yet underexplored intersection.