Physicians must take action at the local level to help their communities solve air and water pollution problems, speakers at the American Medical Association Congress on Environmental Health Problems warned.
William S. Spicer, Jr., MD, of the University of Maryland School of Medicine told participants that, "it behooves the practicing physician to be aware of the trend in respiratory disease and to accept a major role in community action relating to air pollution and respiratory health."
In the words of C. L. Wilbar, Jr., MD, Pennsylvania Secretary of Health, "[The physician's] influence in his community and at all levels of government in support of public water supplies and water pollution control projects and programs can be very effective in protecting the public health."
Spicer, stressing the high level of chronic respiratory disease in the US, noted that in areas where pollution is high, "the relationship between air pollution and chronic