Abstract
Occupational heat stress has an important negative impact on the well-being, health and productivity of workers and should; therefore, be recognized as a public health issue in Europe. There is no comprehensive heat health warning system in Slovenia combining public health measures with meteorological forecasts. The aim of this research was to provide insight into the development of such a system in Slovenia, turning the communication from the current meteoalarm into a broader system that has more information for different social groups. To achieve this goal, the following steps were used: Analysis of summer temperatures and issued meteoalarms, a survey of the general knowledge about heat among the public, organization and management of two stakeholder symposia, and a final survey on workers’ opinions on heat stress and measures, supplemented by interviews with employers. Summer average daily temperature distributions in Slovenia changed during the investigated period (1961–2019) and the mean values increased over time by 2–3 °C. Additionally, the number of days with fulfilled yellow (potentially dangerous) and especially orange (dangerous) meteoalarm conditions increased significantly after 1990. The survey of the general public about heat stress and warnings showed that efforts to raise awareness of heat issues need to be intensified and that public health measures should effectively target vulnerable groups. Stakeholder symposia and further surveys have shown that awareness and understanding of the negative effects of heat stress on health and productivity are still quite low, so effective ways of disseminating information to different sectors while striking the best balance between efficiency, feasibility and economic cost have to be found.
Highlights
In Slovenia, the average summer air temperature is increasing and there is a close correlation between the average summer air temperature and the number of hot days, which is expected to increase [1,2]
This paper aims to provide insight into the development of comprehensive heat communication in the frame of a heat health warning system in Slovenia: from the current meteoalarm to a broader communication with more information for different social groups
We considered four main steps: (1) Preparing comprehensive information on the climatological situation and the issued heat warnings during summer in Slovenia, (2) assessing the general knowledge of the public on heat stress, (3) providing an opportunity for different stakeholders to meet and agree on ideas, and (4) identifying the issues workers and employers face in terms of occupational heat stress
Summary
In Slovenia, the average summer air temperature is increasing and there is a close correlation between the average summer air temperature and the number of hot days, which is expected to increase [1,2]. Europe’s hot summer temperatures [4] are becoming an increasing challenge in various social environments. The population groups most affected by heat waves are older people [5,6], whose body temperature control is impaired due to physiological changes, chronic diseases, the intake of certain drugs and lifestyle, which can quickly lead to dehydration [7]. It is recommended that heat warning thresholds for the general public. Public Health 2020, 17, 5829; doi:10.3390/ijerph17165829 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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