Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Climate change and the associated extreme weather events – increasingly frequent and intense heatwaves, devastating floods and storms, or widespread wildfires – pose risks not only directly to the population’s health but also to health systems in Europe. The impacts of climate extremes include physical damage to healthcare facilities, equipment and materials used in medical procedures; occupational health and safety concerns for healthcare workers associated with thermal discomfort or additional patient numbers; and disruption of healthcare delivery through power failures or cancellations of procedures. Systematic implementation of adaptation actions is urgently needed, in parallel to reduction of carbon footprint of the health sector. Firstly, the exposure of physical health infrastructure to climate risks, the impacts already experienced, and the adaptation measures put in place will be discussed. This will draw on the data and knowledge gathered by the European Environment Agency within the European Climate and Health Observatory initiative. Healthcare Without Harm Europe will present the key findings from the LIFE RESYSTAL and MOUNTADAPT project, based on the experiences of pilot hospitals and regional health systems across Europe. Secondly, the workshop will focus on healthcare workers. The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA), based on empirical evidence gathered through its recent research activities, will discuss the health and safety risks to which this group of employees are exposed and how such risks are currently being addressed in their workplace, in the face of weather extremes and climate change. The Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region will offer insights into the levels of climate awareness among health professionals, and the adequacy of the current climate-health education to ensure they have the right knowledge and skills. Thirdly, experts from WHO Europe and IANPHI will discuss how prepared European health systems are to address the biggest climate threat to health in Europe: heat. The status of heat mortality and morbidity surveillance; early warnings; and heat-health action plans implementation will be covered. The key aspects of new guidelines of WHO Europe for heat-health action plans will be discussed, alongside the IANPHI’s work on harmonizing heat-health impact metrics. The discussion with the audience will be an essential part of the session. It will help to prioritise the needs for action and to identify good practice examples of adaptation actions for inclusion in the European Climate and Health Observatory knowledge hub. Key messages • All aspects of health systems in Europe - physical infrastructure, healthcare workforce, care delivery - are under pressure from climate change-related weather events (heatwaves, floods, wildfires). • Urgent action is needed to ensure climate resilience of healthcare facilities, appropriate knowledge, skills and preparedness of healthcare workforce and continuity of healthcare delivery. Speakers/Panellists Marisol Yglesias Gonzalez WHO/Europe, Bonn, Germany Gabriella Abruzzo Health Care Without Harm Europe, Brussels, Belgium Mikaela Grotenfelt-Enegren Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki, Finland
Language: English
Subfield: Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,181
OpenAlex ID: W7223657840