[Community-based prevention of climate-associated health risks].

BACKGROUND

Climate changes and their impact on public health services are presenting officials with new challenges. The Klimzug Nordhessen project provides a framework for the development of suitable adaptation strategies to deal with climate changes.

PROJECT

The demographic and climatic circumstances in the region in and surrounding Kassel require a focus on the prevention of heat-caused morbidity and mortality among adults 75 or more years old. The Klimzug Nordhessen project assesses the feasibility of heat monitoring for city and county regions and collects data about the temperature-related comfort of older people. The main focus of the project is the development of prevention strategies for older people who live at home in climatic and demographic high-risk regions.

CONCLUSIONS

In the face of inadequate data, the current cooperation between science and practice seems to be an appropriate base for the development of verifiable empirical methods and instruments as well as evidence-based prevention strategies at the communal level.