Health and health facilities

This executive summary synthesizes global evidence on extreme heat and health, showing rising heat-related mortality, illness and productivity losses, and highlighting surveillance, HHWSs, HHAPs, adaptation and mitigation measures.

As health risks sensitive to changes in the climate rise in the Greater Mekong Subregion, this brief outlines the impact of compounding risks and shows how building capacity and reinforcing early warning protocols can strengthen regional resilience.

Indonesia is aligning policies and strengthening intra-government coordination to address the growing health risks of climate change.

The Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN) experts have identified ten key trends influencing heat action, driving the focus and prioritizing action for the Network and its numerous global, regional and national partners.

This study shows global evidence on climate change’s impact on the health and wellbeing of indigenous children, highlighting five interconnected outcomes, calling for culturally grounded, geographically diverse, and child-centred climate-health research.

This research describes experiences of individuals working in, residing in, and providing disaster response to long-term care (LTC) settings in Puerto Rico during and after Hurricane Maria.

This paper examines the impact of Hurricane Harvey on home health (HH) care in Texas, linking 2017-2018 patient-level Medicare HH claims with county-level data on disaster declarations from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

This study suggests that wildland-urban interface (WUI) disasters create a distinct post-disaster exposure regime characterised by persistent internal metal mixtures associated with pulmonary impairment months after the event.

Conclusions from the ILO Meeting of Experts on occupational safety and health in extreme weather events and changing weather patterns, providing guidance on prevention, preparedness, risk assessment, early warning, workplace measures and resilience.

Experiences of garment workers in this study show that extreme heat is not just uncomfortable but determines health, mental well-being, productivity, and livelihood. Yet workplace regulations and climate responses remain poorly equipped to address risks.

This review examines climate change in Türkiye, its effects on health and cancer care, and the role of oncology nurses in adaptation, disaster preparedness, environmental health awareness, and supporting patients during climate-related crises.

This paper analyses 18 global case studies of healthcare systems facing extreme weather events and identifies four resilience pathways, showing that resilience depends on cross-scale adaptive capacity, coordination, workforce support and recovery systems.

This scoping review of 176 studies from 41 countries found that heatwave-associated deaths are rarely coded as direct heat-related, while surveillance systems remain fragmented, highlighting the need for standardized and integrated monitoring.

This NDMA guide integrates psychosocial support into disaster management in Pakistan, emphasizing that early, inclusive PSS is key for mental health, resilience, and recovery—advocating MHPSS as central to sustainable development, not a stand-alone add-on

A new survey by the Annenberg Public Policy Center finds that the majority of Americans believe climate change is increasing the risk of respiratory diseases and heat- and insect-related illnesses.

This paper estimates that epidemics were associated with an average annual loss of 17,549 health workers globally from 1990 to 2019, with the greatest burden in South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and lower-income countries.

This article extends debates at the intersection of infrastructure, adaptation, and vulnerability by exploring everyday practices of climate adaptation through people’s attempts to weatherize their houses during climate-related emergencies.

Wildfires can turn natural metals in soil into toxic, airborne particles. Stanford researchers are working to predict where these metals travel and warn people in harm’s way.

More than 3,600 people are staying in 37 holding centres across Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading districts. No major outbreak has been reported, but cases of colds, coughs and viral fever are common.

This Climate and Health Vulnerability Assessment (CHVA) sets out to understand how climate change is affecting health outcomes and Tunisia’s health system, and what opportunities exist for health system adaptation.

Given its speed, scale and scope, the Bundibugyo Ebola virus disease that broke out in the DRC in mid-2026 could become a global epidemic. Preventing a fast-spreading outbreak that has already taken over a large geographical region is difficult.

Children across Europe have returned to school after a summer of extreme heat. As the climate warms, one question is becoming harder to ignore: how can students learn when classrooms become dangerously hot?

This research examines how geographic spread approaches can be adapted to account for the specific travel patterns and epidemiological context of the DRC–Uganda border. A geographic spread approach is used to estimate the burden of infectious disease.

As heat overlaps with other intensifying climate events, scientists are uncovering how they compound each other – and how cities can adapt

An increase in pollution from wildfires and heatwaves risks undermining international efforts to improve air quality and protect human and ecosystem health, according to a new WMO report, which traces interlinkages between air quality and climate.

The sixth WMO Air Quality and Climate Bulletin examines links between air quality and climate change, highlighting aerosol impacts, wildfire smoke, ozone pollution and atmospheric monitoring needs.

This study systematically reviewed and meta-analyzed the prevalence and risk of child malnutrition following extreme weather events in low- and lower-middle-income countries.

A team found that for every standard deviation increase marine heat wave occurrences in a 24-month period child mortality increases by 5.4 percent. Malnutrition related child wasting and child stunting also increased by 6.5 and 8.8 percent respectively.

Heart failure hospitalizations increase after short-term exposure to cold spells, low and high temperatures, a study in JACC finds. Results from Sweden highlight the need for health systems to prepare for temperature-related health risks.

AI in combination with practical measures such as regulating wildlife trading — offers a powerful technology for managing zoonotic diseases and reducing the risk of spillover, possibly even preventing outbreaks in the first place

ADB-supported regional cooperation is helping Southeast Asian hospitals assess climate risks, strengthen resilience and reduce emissions. Shared frameworks and investments aim to ensure reliable health services during climate-related disruptions.

Climate change can extend mosquito activity and, speed up their development and reproduction. Scientists are controlling mosquito populations using Wolbachia carrying male mosquitoes which produce eggs that don't hatch and sterilize female mosquitoes.

Heat-related deaths look less dramatic than other climate disasters, yet they are far more frequent. This article looks into why Europe’s deadliest climate hazard remains its least visible one.

Emerging research shows that a drier world is often a sicker one, too. A new study takes stock of nearly 100 scientific studies of diseases found throughout the animal kingdom to reveal how drought can help deadly infections and parasites spread.

Led in part by SFU, COPE project aims to help older adults prepare for and respond to extreme heat. The project is part of SFU Climate Innovation , a critical research priority that supports a community-centred response to the impacts of climate change.

This publication examines how Japan’s efforts to reorganise regional healthcare in response to an ageing and shrinking population could better integrate disaster resilience.

A 15-year study of Great East Japan Earthquake survivors finds that worsening posttraumatic stress symptoms during the first 2 years strongly predict persistent long-term psychological distress.

This study finds that age-specific heat tolerance thresholds dramatically increase estimates of future heat exposure, with older adults facing severe risks under global warming.

This report reviews India's growing heat risk, the evolution of Heat Action Plans, financing mechanisms, and emerging governance approaches to strengthen climate resilience and public health protection.

This study examines how Canadian university emergency websites communicate mental health preparedness, finding that physical safety guidance is far more visible than mental health support.

A Stanford Medicine-developed app shows that older adults’ geographic movements — also known as their life-space mobility — shrink in extreme heat that makes leaving the house difficult.

This article intends to assess the prevalence and determinants of depression, anxiety, and stress among urban residents in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Smoke from wildfires can travel thousands of kilometres, crossing borders, oceans and continents. Understanding where it will go next has become an increasingly important scientific challenge.

Nurses are collapsing during shifts amid “inhumane and impossible” conditions caused by extreme heat, their union has warned.