Resources and Research to Educate and Advocate for Change and Fight Against Heat
Climate change and the extreme heat it brings to our communities is a human-made problem. PSR’s Environment and Health Program has sounded the alarm for years about the fossil fuels that drive climate change, and we have helped the country change course toward a cleaner energy policy.
Thanks to our supporters, PSR created the resources below on the health hazards of extreme heat. Please use them to educate and advocate in your community for health and a livable climate.
From Concern to Action: Health Professionals Leading the Charge for Extreme Heat Protection
PSR co-sponsored this webinar featuring a panel discussion on OSHA’s latest proposal to protect workers from extreme heat.
Heat: Effects on the Elderly and Other Vulnerable Populations
Pamphlet on the health effects of heat by PSR Past President Alan Lockwood, MD, FAAN.
Heat, Fire, Water: How Climate Change Has Created a Public Health Emergency
Extreme heat, billowing wildfires, and water—either too much or not enough—are today’s faces of climate change. PSR Past President Alan Lockwood, MD, FAAN profiles the health effects of these frightening phenomena.
Improving the Built Environment to Reduce Indoor Heat-Related Illnesses and Deaths
Heat waves can produce dangerous indoor heat, especially for people who don’t have or can’t afford air conditioning. Heat pumps can help. From Greater Boston PSR.
Workers Memorial Week Heat Protection Letter
Letter signed by PSR and partner groups asking the Department of Labor to issue a heat stress standard to protect worker safety, citing climate change and rising temperatures.
Climate and Health: Heat
A fact sheet from PSR on the heat-related health effects of climate change.
Heat’s Deadly Effects
Climate change is likely to increase the frequency of “extreme heat events” or heat waves.
5 Things You Should Know about Climate Change
PSR summarizes the essential health impacts and policy solutions you need to know to fight climate change.
Climate Postcards: Climate Change Makes Me Sick!
Our climate health e-postcards highlight the many ways that climate change harms our health. View each e-card to find information, resources, and opportunities to take climate-protective action.
Extreme Heat: Solutions for Equitable Cooling
From PSR Colorado, this resource page features a webinar recording as well as related resources on protecting vulnerable populations from extreme heat.
By The Numbers
815
Or more
Workers killed by heat stress
Between 1992 and 2017, at least 815 workers died from heat stress. This is likely a vast underestimate, as heat-related deaths are underreported.
105°F
Body temperature
Sign of Heat Stroke
A body temperature of 105°F (40.5°C) or higher is a sign of heat stroke, a medical emergency. Children, the elderly, and those with pre-existing medical conditions are at elevated risk from extreme heat.
Latest Heat News & Actions
Take Action: Protect workers from extreme heat!
OSHA has proposed a rule to protect approximately 36 million workers from extreme heat and its negative health impacts. Health professionals, support the rule by submitting a comment today.
Massachusetts is hot for all the wrong reasons
Letter to the editor in the Boston Globe by Greater Boston PSR Co-Chair Susan Racine, MD.
Hot and Bothered
Hello! I’m Paige Knappenberger, the new Director of Physicians for Social Responsibility’s Environment and Health Program. Rather than detailing my professional journey, I want to share what’s been weighing on my mind lately.
LA launches heat awareness campaign. Here are ways to stay cool
Article in LAist quoting Tiffany Rivera, PSR-Los Angeles’ Climate Health Project Coordinator.