Overheating in care homes

UK Climate Resilience Programme Webinar Series 2021

Date: 24 March, 12-1pm GMT

Speakers: Mike Davies (UCL); stakeholder response from April Cole (Care Quality Commission)

Chair:  Kate Lonsdale

See links to a video of the webinar and slides below

Abstract

In the coming decades the UK is expected to experience hotter and drier summers, and more frequent and intense heatwaves.  The UK also has a rapidly ageing population, with people aged 75 or over expected to account for 13% of the total population by 2035. Older populations can be more vulnerable to heat stress due to underlying chronic health complications. As older people spend much of their time indoors, their exposure to heat is largely governed by the indoor environment. In care homes, poor building design, ineffective heat management, and diverging needs and preferences between staff and residents may contribute to increased indoor heat exposure with detrimental consequences for the health of the most vulnerable residents. This webinar will describe the work to date of the ‘ClimaCare’ project in addressing these issues. We will discuss the monitoring and modelling that we have undertaken and also  provide details of some initial work to monetize the health benefits of adaptations designed to protect against heat risks.

Biographies

Mike Davies is Professor of Building Physics and Environment at University College London (UCL). His research interests lie in the provision of healthy and comfortable built environments in the context of a changing climate. He was the founding Director of the UCL Institute for Environmental Design and Engineering. He is currently a member of the UK Committee on Climate Change (Adaptation) and Director of the multi-disciplinary Complex Built Environment Systems group at UCL.

April Cole is from the Care Quality Commission. April has worked in the health and care sector since 2002, and specifically policy since 2013. Her background is in public affairs and communications, and she has worked in both the public and private sector in the UK and Australia, including European lobbying for the Royal College of Nursing. At the Care Quality Commission she has worked on surveillance information for the public, the updated technology in care web resource, and consumer rights in social care. She completed her MSc in Health Policy in 2019, focussing on monitoring technologies in adult social care, and is a trained Schwartz Round facilitator.