果冻直播视频

Close
Found 0 results for your search. Showing 0 to 0.
No results could be found for your search.
x Close Search
Close

Investigating the Compounding and Cascading Impacts of Climate Events on Mortality and Morbidity outcomes: a comparative study between Japan and the UK - NU/LSHTM project

Supervisors

Nagasaki University

LSHTM 

Project

Climate change has intensified the frequency and severity of extreme weather events.1,2 Whilst there are clear relationships between health and climate hazards such as heatwaves, wildfires and flooding, the combined impacts of such events occurring at the same time are not well understood. There is concern that such compound events can exacerbate physical health conditions to a much greater degree than individual events, and can also increase the risk of mental health disorders, such as anxiety, depression, and suicide.3 Recent extreme summers have demonstrated that the co-occurrence of such events can also overwhelm public health and other support services.4 Understanding these impacts is therefore critical for strengthening health system preparedness to current and future climate change.

This study aims to quantify the compound effects of heatwaves, wildfires and extreme precipitation events (floods and thunderstorms) on mortality and morbidity, including mental health outcomes, in the UK and Japan. These two countries provide contrasting contexts鈥攂oth experience extreme weather events but differ in climate, health infrastructure, housing stock and demographic profiles鈥攎aking them ideal for a comparative study of health vulnerabilities and resilience strategies. Japan鈥檚 long-standing disaster management strategies can be extended and adapted to enhance climate resilience, ensuring the lessons learned from earthquakes, typhoons, and tsunamis translate into better responses to climate events. These transferable strategies offer valuable insights to inform resilience-building efforts against compound climate events in both countries.

The study will leverage daily mortality and morbidity (e.g. hospital admissions, ambulance dispatches) records from national health databases, including those due to mental health, and integrate them with weather data in both countries. While the initial focus is on the UK and Japan, the findings will have broader implications for other countries facing similar risks. If the student has sufficient time, the analysis may be expanded to other countries, including low- and middle-income countries, as relevant data are available through the supervisors' collaborative network. This expansion will enrich the study by offering insights into health system vulnerabilities across diverse socioeconomic and climatic contexts, further contributing to global efforts to mitigate the health risks of climate change. 

References

  1. Hajat S, Proestos Y, Araya-Lopez J-L, Economou T, Lelieveld J. Current and future trends in heat-related mortality in the MENA region: a health impact assessment with bias-adjusted statistically downscaled CMIP6 (SSP-based) data and Bayesian inference. Lancet Planetary Health; 2023: doi: 10.1016/S2542-5196(23)00045-1.
  2. Madaniyazi L, Armstrong B, Tobias A, et al. Seasonality of mortality under climate change: a multicountry projection study. The Lancet Planetary Health. 2024 Feb 1;8(2):e86-94.
  3. AghaKouchak A, Chiang F, Huning LS, Love CA, Mallakpour I, Mazdiyasni O, Moftakhari H, Papalexiou SM, Ragno E, Sadegh M. Climate extremes and compound hazards in a warming world. Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences. 2020 May 30;48(1):519-48.
  4. Howarth C et al. (2024) Turning up the heat: Learning from the summer 2022 heatwaves in England to inform UK policy on extreme heat. London: Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environmental, London School of Economics and Political Science.

The role of LSHTM and NU in this collaborative project

The student will be based primarily in Nagasaki, with a minimum of six months at LSHTM for training, data analysis, and supervisory guidance.

Lina Madaniyazi and Aurelio Tobias will facilitate data collection on environmental factors and health outcomes, while also offering a comprehensive training program and in-depth methodological supervision.

Shakoor Hajat will provide access to environmental and health outcome data for the UK and offer expertise in statistical analysis. The student will also benefit from related work being undertaken within the THERM-UK project, including expert input on modelling compound climate extremes from climate scientists at Leeds University and The Met Office.

Particular prior educational requirements for a student undertaking this project 

The student should possess a Master鈥檚 level qualification in public health, epidemiology, or medical statistics. However, candidates with another Master鈥檚 level qualification, as long as it includes a robust epidemiological and/or statistical component, will also be considered. 

Additionally, experience working with programming languages such as Stata or R is highly desirable.

Skills we expect a student to develop/acquire whilst pursuing this project

The student will develop expertise in environmental epidemiology, advanced statistical modelling techniques, and climate-health research, with a particular focus on the health impacts of climate-related disasters across different countries. They will also gain valuable experience working with large environment and health datasets.