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  • >> Welcome back to our video series

  • on evaluating health adaptation for a changing climate.

  • In this video, we introduce three real world health adaptation scenarios that will be used

  • to illustrate evaluation best practices for the rest of our series.

  • Let's meet our three practitioners who are evaluating health adaptations.

  • Cassandra is a program manager who works in her city health department's environmental division.

  • Elaine is an epidemiologist working in her state health department's climate and health program.

  • Jackson is a health educator who works

  • in his county health department's emergency preparedness program.

  • Cassandra is evaluating a new climate adaptation to address flooding events in her city.

  • These flooding events routinely overwhelming the city's sewer system,

  • causing it to release untreated water into a nearby lake.

  • Residents use this lake for both recreation and drinking water.

  • City officials believe the flooding is causing an uptick in reported waterborne disease.

  • So absorb the excess rainwater, city officials are piloting modifications

  • to sewage management using greening techniques that include the addition of rain gardens.

  • Officials expect to see a reduction in waterborne disease and have charged Cassandra

  • with evaluating the impact on health.

  • Meanwhile, at the state level, Elaine is evaluating a health adaptation

  • for wildfire preparedness across her state.

  • In the past decade, wildfires have become more frequent, larger, and longer lasting,

  • leading to increases in respiratory disease.

  • For the past three years, the state has implemented a program

  • to reduce respiratory illnesses.

  • Through a multi tiered approach, the state, climate, and health program works with counties

  • to provide outreach and training to increase protective knowledge and behaviors

  • in at risk communities and to improve access to respirators and in home filters.

  • However, during recent wildfire seasons, news outlets reported on several problems.

  • Some residents didn't evacuate in a timely manner.

  • Others didn't know when it was safe to go outside.

  • And still others were unaware of how to protect the air inside their homes.

  • Consequently, the leadership in her state mandated

  • that wildfire preparedness programs be evaluated so they can learn what works and what doesn't

  • and make improvements across the state.

  • Now, we'll head over to the county health department,

  • where Jackson co leads a working group of clinicians and non profit partners interested

  • in protecting the public's health from extreme heat.

  • In recent years, extreme heat events have led to an increase in heat related hospitalizations,

  • 60% of which are comprised of low income adults aged 65 and older.

  • Those who were hospitalized often lacked proper air conditioning,

  • or couldn't afford to run it during the hot months.

  • Together with his working group, Jackson added a new module to an existing training program

  • for home health aides, whose clients include low income and aging residents.

  • This module is designed to increase the home health aid's knowledge and skills on how

  • to better protect clients during extreme heat events.

  • Jackson expects his evaluation will provide information

  • to help leverage existing relationships between home health aides and their aging clients

  • to reduce heat related hospitalizations.

  • We will be following Cassandra, Elaine,

  • and Jackson's evaluation journeys for the rest of the series.

  • In the following video, engaging stakeholders, our three practitioners will begin identifying

  • and involving stakeholders as they embark on their evaluation planning process

  • for their respective health adaptation actions.

  • [ Music ]

>> Welcome back to our video series

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