ENBEL briefing: Protecting the vulnerable from heatwaves
Description
Exposure to high temperatures impacts human health but some individuals are more at risk due to higher exposures or differential susceptibility. In its policy brief, ENBEL, a European project aimed at connecting health and climate change research, summarises the growing body of evidence on vulnerable groups and prevention measures in heat health action plans. ENBEL highlights that there is limited evidence of the formal evaluation of heat public health interventions and response measures, and a lack of evidence regarding their effectiveness for vulnerable groups specifically. Most current evidence is found to be for school-based interventions for athletes and individual protective cooling equipment for outdoor workers. ENBEL signals that more documentation and research is needed on the measures and activities put in place in general, and specifically for socially deprived, homeless, chronically sick, and mental illness groups – which are neglected by health and social care systems.
The policy briefs can be consulted at ENBEL's website.
Reference information
Source:
The ENBEL project supports EU policy making by bringing together leaders in climate change and health research through a network of major international health and climate research projects under the Belmont Forum’s Collaborative Research Action (CRA), Societal Challenge 1 and 5 of EU’s Horizon 2020, and other national and international funding schemes. This network develops evidence syntheses and co-produces with stakeholders a series of tailor-made knowledge products. The key thematic focus is on environmental and occupational heat, air pollution (including from wildfires) and climate-sensitive infectious diseases, with specific attention given to high-risk groups and populations.
Published in Climate-ADAPT Oct 09 2023 - Last Modified in Climate-ADAPT Apr 04 2024