B.C. organizations scramble to make plans to protect seniors from extreme heat

Outreach organizations in B.C. say they are scrambling to come up with plans to protect seniors from extreme heat because the first record-breaking heat wave arrived unusually early. 

The organizations are concerned for the well-being of seniors, and their worries are heightened by the 2021 heat dome, which killed 619 people, mostly older adults, in just one week.

While meteorologists aren't calling this round of hot weather a "heat dome," scientists predict an increased likelihood of future deadly heat waves because of climate change.

"If we had gotten a heat dome this weekend, we were not quite ready to respond," said Kimberly Barwich, director of community programs at Burnaby Neighbourhood House (BNH).

"It happened way too soon, so we would have been very much caught in a position where we were not very well prepared.

Jas Cheema, a seniors advocate with the B.C. Association of Community Response Networks, who works in the Fraser Valley, agrees.

"There's definitely concern that if we don't get on top of the planning piece and trying to get ahead of this, there could be seniors that are left in that vulnerable space," she said.

More than 40 communities across the province broke temperature records on Sunday, with high temperatures expected to last through Thursday on the North Coast, according to Environment Canada. It is unusual for heat warnings to be issued so early in the year, according to meteorologist Louis Kohanyi.

Expanding wellness calls

BNH is working with community-based senior services agencies, the City of Burnaby and Fraser Health on a heat-related emergency response plan. 

Barwich said groups are creating a program to train volunteers to make wellness phone calls to seniors during heat emergencies. Volunteers will ask seniors questions about their health and will then call 911 or a professional if they're concerned about their health at that moment.

Barwich said BNH is also working with BC211, an organization that connects people to health and other resources, on postcards that will be translated into multiple languages and released to thousands in the community. The cards will include information about the wellness calls and how people can register to get on the list for these calls.

But the wellness call program and postcards won't be ready until the first week of June, according to Barwich, which has her worried about hot weather in the meantime.

"We will be trying to speed up our timeline, but we can only do what we can do," she said.

Cheema, with the B.C. Association of Community Response Networks, said organizations she works with are planning to distribute fans to seniors to help cool down this summer.

But she believes the need to distribute fans highlights that seniors don't have adequate access to air conditioning.

"The province has a role to play in that," Cheema said.

A coroner's report from last summer called on the province to offer more support for vulnerable residents, who often can't escape the heat in their homes.

The government was expected to complete their review into the possibility of providing air conditioners as medical devices through existing programs in the province after consulting with "vulnerable populations" and make their findings public by Dec. 1, 2022.

But the province has yet to make public that review. A Ministry of Health spokesperson said it's "ensuring that a thorough analysis and appropriate engagement is done before publishing the findings of the review."

Preparing the healthcare system

On Monday, Health Minister Adrian Dix said work is underway to deal with the early hot weather and to improve the services in place to support seniors.

"We are preparing our health-care system for that as we deal with the ongoing issues around climate change," he said.