The Case for Heat Acclimatization of Disaster Responders—An Australian Perspective

Frontiers in Public Health

Matt B. Brearley¹ 

关键词: acclimatization;    disaster;    emergency;    heat stress;    preparedness;    responder;    tropics;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpubh.2017.00098

学科分类：卫生学

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Responding to sudden onset disasters in South East Asia and the Western Pacific requires teams of medical personnel to work in hot and seasonally humid environments. Recent Australian Medical Assistance Team (AusMAT) deployments post Typhoon Haiyan (Philippines, 2013), Tropical Cyclone Pam (Vanuatu, 2015), and Tropical Cyclone Winston (Fiji, 2016) exposed responders to such conditions. With the exception of Australia’s northern tropics that experience hot weather year round (1), such conditions are in contrast to the temperate climate experienced by the vast majority of Australians. In order to assemble highly skilled, trained, and accredited AusMAT, members may be recruited from all Australian states and territories, creating the potential for disparity between the climate that team members are accustomed to living and working in, and that of the deployment region. This is an important workplace health and safety consideration, as team members are expected to work 12 h shifts over 14 consecutive days (2). Sustained exposure to hot and humid work conditions increases the risk of heat stress, impacting both individual team member health and the delivery of medical services to those in need. While strategies are available to mitigate responder heat stress (3–6), most approaches are resource dependent and may therefore not be feasible in austere disaster settings. By contrast, heat acclimatization, defined as the physiological and perceptual adaptations conferred by frequent elevations of core temperature, is a mitigation strategy that can be developed and maintained in the home environment in readiness for deployment.

【 授权许可】

CC BY