Neighborhood Inequalities in the Impact of Extreme Heat Events on Emergency Medical Services

Heeju Sohn, Emory University
Noreen Goldman, Princeton University

As the frequency and intensity of heat waves increase worldwide, the number of heat-related morbidity and mortality is expected to grow. Prior research has established a strong link between extreme heat and mortality, but few have examined how increased demand for emergency medical services can lead to delays during heat waves. Furthermore, no studies have focused on how heatwave-related delays differ by neighborhood vulnerability despite the numerous studies showing that heat waves affect people and places unequally. Our study merges three US-bases data sources from 2022—the National Emergency Medical Service Information System, the American Community Survey, and spatial data of extreme heat events— (1) to test whether demand for emergency vehicle transport and delays increase during heat waves, and (2) to examine inequalities in demand and delays between neighborhoods with different vulnerabilities to heat. We will use multivariate Poisson and linear regression models to conduct difference-in-difference analyses to test for differences in heat wave-associated changes in emergency transport between neighborhoods for all causes, cardiovascular illnesses, and psychiatric conditions.

Keywords: Population, Environment, and Climate Change, Health and Morbidity, Neighbourhood/contextual effect analysis, Inequality, Disadvantage and Discrimination

See extended abstract.