The committee warns: “Exposure to heat is already an issue for health. Types of hospital ward that are vulnerable to overheating presently make up 90pc of the complete stock [by floorspace].
“Overheating in hospitals is a serious situation provided the vulnerability of patients.”
The assessment of hospital wards comes from forthcoming Cambridge University investigation, which shows that temperatures are presently exceeding 30C (86F) in some wards when the outdoors temperature is 22C (71.6F) – suggesting several hospital wards may have reached uncomfortably large temperatures throughout last week’s warm climate.
It finds that some £17.5bn of upgrades could be required to make hospitals resilient to the heat by means of measures such as tinted windows and enhanced ventilation.
Monitoring of many hospital kinds showed temperatures breaching 26C – the threshold at which rest is interrupted – and 28C – the threshold above which it is deemed to be uncomfortably scorching.
Professor Alan Short, the writer of the Cambridge study, mentioned that most modern hospitals have been all of a sort prone to overheating, with the worst performers getting “very light-weight 1960s buildings”, with tons of windows, usually pointing southwards, that had been restrained from opening, higher occupancy and thin walls.
Health and safety guidelines “not to enable any windows to be opened by more than four inches” had the “unintended consequence” of avoiding adequate ventilation, he explained.
The only kind of hospital recognized as being resilient to overheating were “Nightingale ward” buildings, which the last Labour government vowed to remove due to the fact they concerned massive numbers of patients on mixed wards.
Lord Krebs said measures to tackle overheating could incorporate “tinted windows, awnings to avoid sun coming in, painting the outdoors of buildings white, a range of passive cooling measures [and] better ventilation”.
Prof Quick and Lord Krebs the two said they did not advocate widespread installation of air conditioning because it would use massive amounts of vitality and contribute to climate alter.
Katherine Murphy, chief executive of the Patients Association, stated: “Sufferers deserve to be treated in a secure, clean and cozy environment. There is no excuse for sufferers obtaining to tolerate hot and stuffy wards with out correct ventilation. Wards that are too scorching can have a massive effect on the wellbeing of sufferers and the employees who deal with them.
“Whilst we acknowledge that several of our hospital buildings are outdated, there must be mechanisms in spot to handle temperatures. It is important that there is proper investment and maintenance of our hospital buildings in order to deliver them up to normal and also to stop unnecessary vitality fees.”
A Division of Health spokesman said: “The annual Heatwave Plan for England recognises the significance of extended-phrase organizing. We have also issued guidance this yr on how to defend NHS buildings and guarantee they are resilient to climate modify.”
Hospitals at growing threat of overheating due to climate alter
