Environment and Human Health NWS Partners Workshop June 23, 2005

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Environment and Human HealthNWS Partners
WorkshopJune 23, 2005

• Margaret Fowke
• Office of Strategic Planning and Policy
• National Weather Service

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Scientific Advances Bring Environmental
Information and Human Health Together
Well Established Connections
Environment
Human Health
Emerging Connections
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Public health connects across all of NOAA

• NOAA examples
• Temperature, Weather hazards, Wildfire, Solar,
  Ocean Conditions, Air Quality, Diving Safety,
  Climate
• Bad weather, Ocean Conditions, Floods, Climate
• Bad weather , Floods, Solar, Climate
• Marine and Coastal Ecosystems, Air Quality,
  Floods and droughts, Weather, Climate
• Marine and Coastal Ecosystems, Floods and
  droughts, Climate
• Pharmaceuticals and marine natural products

• Public health connections
• Direct effects on humans
• Transportation accidents
• Disruption of health infrastructure
• Effects through changes in incidence of diseases
  (vector- , water-borne, and otherwise)
• Effects through safety and nutritional value of
  food supplies
• Improved medical treatment

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Medical/Health Care Delivery in US
Delivery System
Population Based
Clinical-Hospital
Preventive
Approach
Curative
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Opportunities and Challenges for Environmental
Information Enterprise to Support Human Health

• Education
• Decision support / Expert assistance
• R D
• Information

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Weather education in the medical communitymost
frequently missed questions

• Rip currents (pre-score 79.32 post-score
  88.12)
• think undertow and rip tides are the same as rip
  currents
• how to escape a rip current if caught in one
• do not understand rip currents can occur in lakes
  too
• Space Weather (pre-score 46.92 post-score 83.85)
• do not understand origin of space weather
• do not understand greatest hazard caused by space
  weather
• do not understand geomagnetic storm, solar
  radiation storm, radio blackout

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Weather education in the medical communitymost
frequently missed questions

• Lightning (pre score 72 post score 89.75)
• believe it safe to be outside during a
  thunderstorm as long as lightning is not seen
• think it is best to lie flat on ground when
  lightning present
• have never heard of 30/30 rule
• UV (pre score 79.13 post score 85.65)
• believe a suntan is healthy and having a base
  suntan protects you from sun damage
• believe wearing sunscreen protects you so can
  sunbathe much longer

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Weather education in the medical communitymost
frequently missed questions

• Hurricanes (pre score 41 post score 75.29)
• do not understand the centerline on the hurricane
  cone of uncertainty
• believe majority of people die in hurricanes from
  salt water flooding, structural collapses, flying
  debris
• believe there is no relationship between
  hurricane strength and size.
• Windchill (pre score 53.43 post score 78)
• Believe it is possible to get frostbite if the
  temperature is above freezing but the wind chill
  is below freezing. (The air temperature has to
  be BELOW freezing in order for frostbite to
  develop on exposed skin.)

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Weather education in the medical communitymost
frequently missed questions

• Air Quality (pre score 84.17 post score 85.42)
• believe the health effects of ozone and particle
  pollution are the same
• believe ozone and particle pollution affect the
  same groups of people
• do not understand particle pollutionoccurs
  year-round
• Seafood Safety (pre score 61.21 post score
  83.94)
• do not know understand methylmercury
• Believe fish sticks unsafe to eat

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Weather education in the medical communitymost
frequently missed questions

• Fire Weather (pre score 73.33 post score 91.11)
• believe NWS determines location of prescribed
  burns (USDA Forest Service)
• believe if trapped in a smoky environment and
  breathing becomes difficult, use a wet cloth to
  filter out the smoke in order to make breathing
  easier. (should use dry to avoid breathing in
  steam and burning lungs)
• Heat (pre score 52 post score 92.67)
• believe cracking the window in a car to help
  ventilate the interior of the car will help to
  prevent hyperthermia related vehicle deaths.