Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
CLIMATE CHANGE WILL likely increase hospital admissions, as a growing number of people are expected to fall ill due to high temperatures.
In the worst case scenario, there could be as many as 1,400 additional deaths per year in Ireland by the end of the century.
New research by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) has found a link between climate change, temperature changes and healthcare demand.
Temperature data from Met Éireann was combined with emergency inpatient hospitalisation data. It was found that temperature increases have a significant impact on hospitalisation figures for related health conditions.
Emergency hospital admissions for temperature-affected diseases were 8.5% higher on hot days (22–25oC) compared to moderate temperature days (10–13oC).
The largest increases in hospitalisations on hot days were seen for circulatory, respiratory and infectious diseases, and amongst younger people (14 years and under).
Emma Balmaine, CEO of the Irish Heart Foundation described the findings as “stark”, saying vulnerable people, such as children and those with cardiovascular disease, will be worst affected.
“To protect public health, it is vital that we invest in our healthcare system to ensure its resiliency and adopt immediate measures to transition to a more environmentally sustainable society,” she said.
Advertisement
On the hottest days where temperatures exceeded 25oC, results showed potential evidence of adaptive behaviour, especially among older people, which suggests that advance notice of warm weather can help people change their behaviour and protect themselves.
Climate change projections
Under the Paris Agreement, Ireland must reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
Dr Kelly de Bruin, Senior Research Officer at the ESRI said: “ Achieving these targets is essential to limit the negative effects of climate change on population health and the healthcare system .”
Mean annual temperatures are projected to increase by between 1 and 1.6oC in the period 2041–2060.
In light of this, in the same period, hospital admissions for health conditions linked with temperature are projected to rise by 12.2% during hotter weather under the most realistic scenario.
However, if the reality is worse than projected, climate change could lead to 1,400 additional deaths per annum in Ireland by the end of the 21st century.
This, the report says, illustrates the urgency required to tackle climate change.
Dr Anne Nolan, Associate Professor at the ESRI said: “These results emphasise the need for policymakers in moderate climate countries including Ireland to implement adaptive measures and increase capacity to accommodate the higher hospital demand from higher temperatures, especially during the summer months.”
The ESRI’s research was funded by the Climate and Health Alliance, an organisation made of health professionals from around the world with the aim of mitigating the effects of climate change in the interest of public health.
Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone...
A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article.
Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
91 Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
“There is no climate emergency “
The late great Professor Ray Bates, the most qualified scientist to talk about climate by a country mile which was ever produced by Ireland.
Was never allowed again on mainstream media though after saying this. I wonder why.
The science is not settled.
The money is settled!
Look up the ICSF ( Irish climate science forum) for the real science.
@peter o donoghue: Real life is too scary for some people, so they like to bury their heads in conspiracy theories online, it’s like a comfort blanket of denial.
@peter o donoghue: Grand so, I guess that one scientist out of god knows how many is right and all the others are wrong. Do you hear yourself? Actually scratch that, I’m sure you’re well used to the sound
@Jacintha Dumbrell: it’s amazing… It’s easier to manipulate & fool people than have them admit they were manipulated & fooled.
“Conspiracy Theories”? Shame most of them are becoming Conspiracy Facts.
The frailty of people’s ego means they go alone with whatever narrative the NPC is being fed to regurgate…. ‘I stand with… ” etc. Which results in bigotry, as your post proves.
@peter o donoghue: From the blog of the Irish Climate Analysis and Research Units hosted by the Department of Geography at Maynooth University:
‘Ray has had a long and distinguished career. But that career has been in atmospheric dynamics and not climate. Yes, both are to do with the atmosphere, but when your toilet is backing up you call the plumber and not the electrician. In the same way when looking for guidance on climate change it is advisable to listen to the climate scientists of which there are many thousands the vast majority of whom (and I mean vast) concur with the broad findings of the IPCC and various national assessments and national academies that climate change is real, its due to us, and that our choices now are of critical import. Equally, if you want to discuss the intricacies of atmospheric dynamics please don’t come knocking at my door!
‘The analysis of Ray Bates is not a peer reviewed paper and finding substantive flaws in it is really not that hard. This has taken me all of an hour of an evening. Compare and contrast to the rigor of the IPCC assessment process with multi-author teams, multiple drafting meetings, substantive rounds of in-depth review, and final sign off on the summary word by word with the governments of the world. Only the most robust findings survive such a process. It is to borrow a colloquialism like contrasting night and day. I know who I’m going to pin my choices as to the future for my kids on. It’s the guys saying this:’
@Brendan O’Brien: the best thing for anyone to do for the earth is not have any children. As long as the world population keeps growing, alot of the measures are “hit in hope”
@John Sleator: Are you trying to suggest that people do not suffer from heat stroke?
That when heat waves arrive people cannot just simply avoid them?
Nonetheless, this is a (yet another) poor report from the ESRI.
Not because people will not suffer in extreme heat.
But because no one yet know the effect of Climate Change on Ireland.
We may well be subject to higher temperatures here.
Or we may have cooler temperatures.
@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: heat stroke in Ireland? I live in Ireland this is a bs article. Portugal, Spain, Italy etc. Should have a vastly reduced population so. Africa should be unpopulated by default.
Maybe for other countries but not here. Such fear mongering. Our climate will be wetter and colder some times , hotter and dry others. Quick raise taxes
@Gerald Kelleher: what are your qualifications to dispute over 99% of climate scientists? Apart from your mantra about Royal Society Modellers, put up some hard, factual proven and tested evidence
Oooohhhh ..are you scared yet…more scaremongering on its way!
And if the climate change stories aren’t quiet doin it we’ll throw in a bit of Covid is on the rise again!
Sensationalis and fear mongering at it’s worst. 25°C is not life threatening. The only thing that is “Stark” is the amount of BS that is being written about this.
@Eric Gaffney: No: it states that 1400 deaths p.a. is the worst case scenario, but under the most realistic scenario hospital admissions for health conditions linked with temperature are projected to rise by 12.2% during hotter weather.
@Brendan O’Brien: It’s not quite “reality” if projections and modelling are used. At best It’s the projected reality according to the models. We’ve had junk models inform policy during COVID. The Ferguson models from The Imperial College springs to mind. After such a modelling fiasco it’s not surprising that there might exist some scepticism among some. Many countries and their leaders invoked Ferguson’s model as their rationale for lockdowns (Remember Leo frightening the bejaysus out of the country with his 80,000 deaths that he gleaned from Ferguson’s model?)
Please Google : The Failure of Imperial College Modeling Is Far Worse than We Knew. I can’t post links but it’s available from the American Institute for Economic Research website
@Brendan O’Brien: “To sum up, both cases are similar in that they show scientific uncertainty, pressure to take decisions, alleged science denial, and a central role of models and scenarios for legitimizing policies” – COVID and Climate: Similarities and differences by Reiner Grundmann. Available to read at The National Library of Medicine website.
@Brendan O’Brien: It is relevant, anyone opposed to the chosen narrative is put down immediately with no room for opinion and or cancelled by the powers that be. You think you’re clever but all you do is repeat every climate change article. Take note of what Mr O Leary is saying to you. Everyone is tired of the sky is falling narrative.
@Brendan O’Brien: The similarities between the two are what you questioned and what I answered. Nobody is suggesting there are no differences but will you still ignore the similarities?
@Brendan O’Brien: Who doesn’t care about the future of the planet Brendan? You’re using very emotive language. Obviously you’re passionate about the environment. So am I, so don’t talk down to me please. I do feel the need to repeat… The reason covid is relevant is because the modelling informed policy and even though it was proved that the modelling was wrong, anyone who went outside the established group think was vilified and censored. International cooperation would indeed seem prudent. Could they please start with the world’s biggest institutional polluters i.e. the US military? Maybe on the day they do that I’ll start believing that the ones in power actually care about the planet and aren’t just using this whole agenda to further their control over us
@Darth O’Leary: Yes, it would be better if the US military would act responsibly, but, as per the quote I give above, every action matters, every bit of warming matters, every year matters, every choice matters.
The reality of climate change isn’t just a matter of modelling, as you know. Climate science has evolved over a much longer period and is very persuasive on this matter. I don’t see that it’s positive to try to discredit it by comparing it to the Covid response, which was somewhat ad-hoc and panicky. What good purpose can that serve?
@Brendan O’Brien: Let’s tackle the crisis of pollution in all its forms. I’m all for that. But let’s not quell debate please. The models(if one is so inclined to believe in them dogmatically) themselves give some very wide parameters so there should always be room for debate and as hard as it is sometimes, people should be prepared to change their position as new evidence arises. This didn’t happen enough during COVID and our world is worse off as a result : Unintended consequences of non pharmaceutical intervention for health inequalities in Ireland – available to read at Technical University Dublin website
We should always learn the lessons of the past Brendan. No matter how uncomfortable confronting those lessons can be sometimes
@Darth O’Leary: Yes, but it’s not just a matter of models: extreme temperatures, drought and crop failures in Europe in recent years, for example, can’t just be wished away. ‘People should be prepared to change their position as new evidence arises’ applies to those who deny the reality of climate change as well. Do you ever think of pointing this out to them?
To quote Patricia Scanlon: “There are always people who say humans aren’t causing global warming. Now, if they’re wrong, you are talking about an extinction level threat. If the people on the side of advocating for a cleaner planet are wrong, the worst thing that’ll come is a cleaner planet.”
Everything is going to be okay.The government are allocating an extra 1.5 billion to our very efficent HSE managment team to sort out the problem.God help us all.
@Raymond Dennehy:
With the outrageous prices of hotels,there isn’t even the chance of a short break.
Looking out at the rain it’s probably just as well.
@Lewis Armstrong: The taxpayers fund the modellers to generate the hysteria that filters back through the political community and down to the taxpayer as levies, which , in turn, funds more hysteria in a toxic circle.
If the academic funding went out the so would the Earth-on-fire conviction.
Those who deal with brainwashing say that the quickest way to get people to snap out of an unhealthy condition is to ask questions they know they should answer but can’t as the mind is locked into a subculture.
Ireland as a maritime climate as one topic among many within the research area just as many topics cover biology and geology. As long as our island sits in the Atlantic, it will have a maritime climate.
How will Ireland’s maritime climate change after all the cows and cars are gone?
Hey @TheJournal, by reading the comments on here over the last 6 months it’s clear the your bůllshït is becoming more & more apparent to the general public.
Your attempt at fearmongering is slowly (but surely) being realised & called out.
The mainstream media & social media have been the vessel of fear & hatred as well as programming & indoctrination.
This house of cards will fall, along with the Climate scam, the Alphabet Mafia & all the chaos & other distractions that are orchestrated.
@Brendan O’Brien: I remember people on here saying that before the referendum. As it turned out the the hoi polloi of the journal comments section was closer to the truth than all the government mouthpieces, quangos and pollsters put together. (monocle emoji)
Id be more worried about the crap health service we have leading to more deaths when people go for minor surgeries or check ups as seen in some hospitals than climate change at this stage. But its okay cos just like climate change, the health service will get another billion on top of the 24 billion it already had every year to flush down the toilet on anything other than what its meant for…
Most of you are victims of experimental theorists, so the real topic regarding planetary climate is an adventure surrounding a technical problem that could not be resolved in the era of Copernicus and Galileo.
” The axis of daily rotation is not parallel to the axis of the great circle but is inclined to it by such a part of the circumference, which in our time is almost 23 1/2 degrees. Thus, the Earth’s centre always remains in the plane of the ecliptic, i.e. on the circumference of a great circle, and its poles revolve, drawing small circles on both sides around the centres equidistant from the axis of the great circle. ” Copernicus
The North Pole rotates from its position halfway across the light hemisphere of the Earth from the June Solstice to the September Equinox, not just the polar latitude but the entire planet’s surface.
The maximum circumference where the Sun remains constantly in view is on the June Solstice. As the Earth travels to its Equinox position, the Pole travels closer to the planet’s divisor (line dividing light and dark hemisphere), so the circumference begins to contract. It will eventually disappear altogether on the Equinox and be replaced with an expanding circumference where the Sun remains constantly out of sight.
Galileo disagreed with Copernicus on a second rotation, but it is possible to visually affirm that a planet turns two separate ways to the Sun in the way Copernicus explains.
Copernicus and Galileo couldn’t resolve the issue of the second rotation because of Ptolemy’s framework, which they were obligated to use in their conclusions.
Nowadays, it is simply a matter of looking at another planet turning in two different ways and then reworking the characteristics of these dynamics back into the Earth, the climate, the seasons and down to the single rotation responsible for the day/night cycle.
About 50 seconds in, as the time-lapse speeds up, considerate commenters can clearly see the two surface rotations.
Climate research covers so many areas of research and the proper connections between dynamics and effects on the surface, oceans, and atmosphere across latitudes.
@Gerald Kelleher: but at the end of the day, the sun heats the ground, the ground heats the air. You’ll never feel hot grass, but you will feel hot clay. The more the desserts grow the greater the potential for warmer heat waves over big land mass areas of the the planet
The cold kills more people than the heat. There has also been a reduction of 99% in weather related deaths globally in the last 100+ years. This article is nonsense and fear mongering. There’s nothing in it that’s true.
@Washpenrebel: I don’t know where you get this idea. Could you provide sources?
In any event, if a person is cold they can take action to get warm – wear warmer clothing, eat food, create heating, and so on.
If a person is in an environment where the wet bulb temperature is above body temperature then the body can no longer regulate its temperature. The higher that environmental temperature, the longer that temperature, the greater risk of serious health problems, and death.
There is little a person can do to reduce the temperature of their local environment.
There is a lot a person can do to raise the temperature of their local environment.
I noticed this article is written very carefully to consider only increases in hospitalisations and deaths due to higher summer temperatures.
It conveniently omits details on the reductions in hospitalisations and deaths due to higher winter temperatures.
A study published by Environmental Research Letters in 2021 estimates that globally, 0.3 million annual deaths are caused by high temperatures, whereas 4.6 million are caused by low temperatures.
Studies by Nature Climate Change and the WHO predict that a 1.5 degree Celsius increase in global temperatures would result in about 50,000 additional heat-related deaths annually, and several hundred thousand fewer cold-related deaths.
@Mark O’Callaghan: But directly heat-related deaths are just part of the picture: one also has to consider the potentially devastating effects of climate-change-related drought, famine, population displacement, wildfires, crop failure …
@Brendan O’Brien: there might be, if you believe the well funded climate modellers.
Tell me Brendan, when have predictive climate models turned out to be accurate?
@Seamus: Dodging the question? You are dodging the real world.
But, to answer your question: ‘In summary, climate projections reported by ExxonMobil scientists between 1977 and 2003 were accurate and skillful in predicting subsequent global warming.’
@Brendan O’Brien: I had read recently (sorry, I cannot remember where) that there is a more-or-less constant downward trend in global deaths due to extreme weather events over the last couple of hundred years as building standards and materials slowly improve over time.
@Brendan O’Brien: Brendan, “settled science” was predicting an ice age before 2000 in the 70s. In the 90s, it was catastrophic sea level rise before 2000, then 2010, then 2020; still waiting for this to materialise. Now it’s a forecast of widespread fatality due to heat.
Take a day off Brendan. You’ve been scammed; you are wasting your life.
150 rounds of drinks ordered at the Dáil's bars on the day TDs failed to elect a new Taoiseach
34 mins ago
674
11
Dublin
What exactly is 'affordable' housing ... and how much should it cost?
6 hrs ago
2.2k
Darndale
Discovery of human hand in yard of Dublin primary school not thought to be malicious
Updated
12 hrs ago
54.2k
Your Cookies. Your Choice.
Cookies help provide our news service while also enabling the advertising needed to fund this work.
We categorise cookies as Necessary, Performance (used to analyse the site performance) and Targeting (used to target advertising which helps us keep this service free).
We and our 152 partners store and access personal data, like browsing data or unique identifiers, on your device. Selecting Accept All enables tracking technologies to support the purposes shown under we and our partners process data to provide. If trackers are disabled, some content and ads you see may not be as relevant to you. You can resurface this menu to change your choices or withdraw consent at any time by clicking the Cookie Preferences link on the bottom of the webpage .Your choices will have effect within our Website. For more details, refer to our Privacy Policy.
We and our vendors process data for the following purposes:
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
Cookies Preference Centre
We process your data to deliver content or advertisements and measure the delivery of such content or advertisements to extract insights about our website. We share this information with our partners on the basis of consent. You may exercise your right to consent, based on a specific purpose below or at a partner level in the link under each purpose. Some vendors may process your data based on their legitimate interests, which does not require your consent. You cannot object to tracking technologies placed to ensure security, prevent fraud, fix errors, or deliver and present advertising and content, and precise geolocation data and active scanning of device characteristics for identification may be used to support this purpose. This exception does not apply to targeted advertising. These choices will be signaled to our vendors participating in the Transparency and Consent Framework.
Manage Consent Preferences
Necessary Cookies
Always Active
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Store and/or access information on a device 104 partners can use this purpose
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development 136 partners can use this purpose
Use limited data to select advertising 106 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Create profiles for personalised advertising 78 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Use profiles to select personalised advertising 77 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Create profiles to personalise content 37 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Use profiles to select personalised content 33 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Measure advertising performance 127 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Measure content performance 60 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources 75 partners can use this purpose
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Develop and improve services 82 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Use limited data to select content 38 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
Use precise geolocation data 43 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Actively scan device characteristics for identification 25 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Ensure security, prevent and detect fraud, and fix errors 86 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Deliver and present advertising and content 96 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Match and combine data from other data sources 68 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Link different devices 50 partners can use this feature
Always Active
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Identify devices based on information transmitted automatically 84 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
Save and communicate privacy choices 64 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say