Key facts
- Hospitals are preparing for future heat waves, acknowledging them as a new normal due to climate change.
- Paris-Saclay Hospital is acquiring an ice-making machine after struggling to source ice during a recent heat wave.
- France is investing 100 million euros in cooling systems for hospitals and purchasing 30,000 air conditioning units.
- The World Health Organization warned that Europe is warming rapidly and heat waves are becoming more frequent.
- Emergency departments saw a surge in heat-related illnesses, including heart attacks, dehydration, and kidney malfunctions.
Hospitals across Europe are implementing measures to better cope with future heat waves, recognizing the increasing frequency and intensity of such events due to climate change. Following a recent record-smashing heat wave that strained healthcare systems, institutions like the Paris-Saclay Hospital are urgently acquiring essential equipment such as ice-making machines and air conditioning units. The hospital's director noted that they were unprepared for the severity of the recent heat, leading to a scramble for solutions like sourcing ice from fast-food restaurants and supermarkets.
France's government has pledged significant investment, with Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu announcing a 100-million euro ($114 million) fund for hospital cooling systems and the purchase of 30,000 air conditioning units. These efforts aim to prevent a recurrence of the critical situation experienced during the recent heat, which saw emergency departments overwhelmed with patients suffering from heat exposure, dehydration, heart attacks, and kidney malfunctions.
The World Health Organization has characterized the recent heat wave as a preview of increasingly challenging summers ahead, emphasizing that Europe is warming at more than twice the global average. Dr. Nicolas Gonzales, head of the emergency department at Paris-Saclay Hospital, described the influx of patients as a "big mountain" lasting for seven days, comparing the summer's climate crisis to the winter's influenza and COVID-19 epidemics. He highlighted that heat acts as a physical assault on the body, leading to severe health consequences when the body can no longer adapt.
Older hospital facilities within the Paris-Saclay group, which are not as well-equipped with air conditioning, faced particular difficulties. Temporary measures, including electric fans and ice blocks, were used to preserve medicines, and student nurses were enlisted to help keep patients hydrated. The top floor of one psychiatric unit reportedly reached 33 C (91 F), prompting plans for renovations and the installation of cool rooms on each floor.