Jul 16, 2021 This NJ City Is Boiling. What’s Being Done to Cool Off Its ‘Heat Island’?

Dr. Eric Wasserman

Dr. Eric Wasserman, the chair and medical director of emergency medicine at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, told NJ Advance Media emergency room visits typically increase 5 to 10% during heat waves. He said the hospital tries to prepare ahead of heat waves by stocking up on ice, bottled water, cold intravenous fluids and would then utilize a “mist and fan” method of evaporative cooling of hyperthermic patients. In some cases, parts of the hospital may be reconfigured into a public cooling center, though the COVID-19 pandemic has made that more difficult.

“We just make sure that we have the usual treatments available in large quantities for heat emergencies,” Wasserman said. Read more.

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