How does climate change affect emergency and acute care?
Innovative research project at Magdeburg University Hospital investigates the link between weather and emergency department utilisation in Germany
How do weather phenomena affect emergency and acute care throughout Germany? An interdisciplinary research team led by Prof. Dr Felix Walcher, Director of the Department of Trauma Surgery at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, is investigating this question in the "KlimaNot" project. An interdisciplinary team from the fields of medicine, computer science and mathematics is investigating the specific effects of climate change-induced weather changes on the utilisation of emergency departments in certain weather constellations. The effects on different patient groups and regional differences are also being analysed. The aim is to develop evidence-based measures for improved care planning.
Photo: Prof Dr med Felix Walcher, Director of the University Clinic for Trauma Surgery Magdeburg. Photographer: Melitta Schubert/UMMD
"Weather events, especially periods of heat and extreme heat, have a significant impact on the health and well-being of the population," explains Walcher."The KlimaNot project enables us to precisely record the connections between climatic changes and the utilisation of emergency care.Our investigations should help to better adapt healthcare provision to the needs of the population and develop preventative measures," says the emergency physician.
The project combines treatment data from the AKTIN emergency admissions register from currently 50 emergency admissions with weather data from the German Weather Service and also carries out prospective data surveys in three geriatric medicine clinics. Finally, geographical conditions are analysed using data from the emergency department at Stuttgart Hospital. Recommendations for action and guidelines are being developed on the basis of these findings.
At the same time, computer scientists at the University Hospital Aachen are working with mathematical modellers at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg to develop a web application that enables an assessment of the impact of significant weather conditions on emergency care.
The partners of KlimaNot are the Robert Koch Institute, the Institute for Mathematical Optimisation at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, the Klinikum der Landeshauptstadt Stuttgart and Aachen University Hospital. The "KlimaNot" project is being funded by theInnovation Fund of the Joint Federal Committee with approximately 1.8 million euros over a period of three years.Funding reference number: 01VSF23017.
Further information can be found here.
The AKTIN emergency admission register is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) as part of the University Medicine 2.0 network: "NUM 2.0", No. 01KX2121, Project: AKTIN@NUM
Contact
Head of the overall consortium: Prof. Dr Felix Walcher, Director of the University Clinic for Trauma Surgery, Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, phone: +49 391 6715575, e-mail:
Project management: Dr rer. nat. Kai Heimrath, Registry and Health Services Research Group, Department of Trauma Surgery, Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, phone: +49 391 6715575, e-mail:
Photo: Dr rer. nat. Kai Heimrath, Registry and Health Services Research Group, University Clinic for Trauma Surgery Magdeburg. Photographer: Sarah Kossmann/UMMD