P062: SOS: Summer of Smoke--a mixed-methods, community-based study investigating the health effects of a prolonged, severe wildfire season on a subarctic population

Introduction: Between June 15 and Aug 31st 2014, Canada’s Northwest Territories (pop 44,000: Stats Can), a subarctic region which is over 2°C warmer than it was in the 1950’s, experienced an unprecedented number of forest fires, with 385 fires and approximately 3.4 million hectares of forest affecte...

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Published in:CJEM
Main Authors: Howard, C., Rose, C., Dodd, W., Scott, P., Cunsulo-Willox, A., Orbinski, J.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Springer Science and Business Media LLC 2017
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/cem.2017.264
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S1481803517002640
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spelling crspringernat:10.1017/cem.2017.264 2023-05-15T17:46:49+02:00 P062: SOS: Summer of Smoke--a mixed-methods, community-based study investigating the health effects of a prolonged, severe wildfire season on a subarctic population Howard, C. Rose, C. Dodd, W. Scott, P. Cunsulo-Willox, A. Orbinski, J. 2017 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/cem.2017.264 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S1481803517002640 en eng Springer Science and Business Media LLC CJEM volume 19, issue S1, page S99 ISSN 1481-8035 1481-8043 Emergency Medicine journal-article 2017 crspringernat https://doi.org/10.1017/cem.2017.264 2022-01-04T16:27:58Z Introduction: Between June 15 and Aug 31st 2014, Canada’s Northwest Territories (pop 44,000: Stats Can), a subarctic region which is over 2°C warmer than it was in the 1950’s, experienced an unprecedented number of forest fires, with 385 fires and approximately 3.4 million hectares of forest affected. This resulted in one of Canada’s most severe and prolonged urban smoke exposures for the capital city of Yellowknife and surrounding Aboriginal communities. Our objective was to obtain a big-picture sense of the health impact of the Summer of Smoke on the population of these communities through a mixture of quantitative and qualitative analysis. Methods: We analyzed PM2.5 levels, salbutamol dispensations, clinic and hospital cardiorespiratory variables, and in-depth video interviews with community members from Yellowknife, N’Dilo, Dettah and Kakisa. Results: 49% of days June15-Aug31 in 2014 had a PM2.5 over 30 mcg/m3, as compared to 3% in 2012 and 9% in 2013 and 2015. Max daily PM 2.5 in 2014 was 320.4 mcg/m3. There was a 22% increase in outpatient salbutamol dispensations in 2014 compared to the average of 2012, 2013 and 2015. More cough, pneumonia and asthma were seen in clinics compared to 2012-2015 (P<0.001). There was a 42% increase in respiratory ER visits in 2014 compared to 2012-13, but no change in cardiac variables. The respiratory effect was most pronounced in children 0-4 (114% increase in ER visits). Qualitative analysis demonstrates themes of fear, isolation, lack of physical activity, alteration of traditional summertime activities for both aboriginal and non-aboriginal subjects, elements of resilience and expectation for future smoky summers in the context of a changing climate. Conclusion: Prolonged wildfire seasons have a profound effect on overall wellbeing. Responses to help minimize mental and physical impacts such as the creation of clean-air community shelters, recreation programming, initiatives to support community cohesion, and “go outside when it is not smoky” messaging require further study. Article in Journal/Newspaper Northwest Territories Subarctic Yellowknife Springer Nature (via Crossref) Dettah ENVELOPE(-114.307,-114.307,62.412,62.412) Kakisa ENVELOPE(-117.356,-117.356,60.931,60.931) Northwest Territories Yellowknife CJEM 19 S1 S99
institution Open Polar
collection Springer Nature (via Crossref)
op_collection_id crspringernat
language English
topic Emergency Medicine
spellingShingle Emergency Medicine
Howard, C.
Rose, C.
Dodd, W.
Scott, P.
Cunsulo-Willox, A.
Orbinski, J.
P062: SOS: Summer of Smoke--a mixed-methods, community-based study investigating the health effects of a prolonged, severe wildfire season on a subarctic population
topic_facet Emergency Medicine
description Introduction: Between June 15 and Aug 31st 2014, Canada’s Northwest Territories (pop 44,000: Stats Can), a subarctic region which is over 2°C warmer than it was in the 1950’s, experienced an unprecedented number of forest fires, with 385 fires and approximately 3.4 million hectares of forest affected. This resulted in one of Canada’s most severe and prolonged urban smoke exposures for the capital city of Yellowknife and surrounding Aboriginal communities. Our objective was to obtain a big-picture sense of the health impact of the Summer of Smoke on the population of these communities through a mixture of quantitative and qualitative analysis. Methods: We analyzed PM2.5 levels, salbutamol dispensations, clinic and hospital cardiorespiratory variables, and in-depth video interviews with community members from Yellowknife, N’Dilo, Dettah and Kakisa. Results: 49% of days June15-Aug31 in 2014 had a PM2.5 over 30 mcg/m3, as compared to 3% in 2012 and 9% in 2013 and 2015. Max daily PM 2.5 in 2014 was 320.4 mcg/m3. There was a 22% increase in outpatient salbutamol dispensations in 2014 compared to the average of 2012, 2013 and 2015. More cough, pneumonia and asthma were seen in clinics compared to 2012-2015 (P<0.001). There was a 42% increase in respiratory ER visits in 2014 compared to 2012-13, but no change in cardiac variables. The respiratory effect was most pronounced in children 0-4 (114% increase in ER visits). Qualitative analysis demonstrates themes of fear, isolation, lack of physical activity, alteration of traditional summertime activities for both aboriginal and non-aboriginal subjects, elements of resilience and expectation for future smoky summers in the context of a changing climate. Conclusion: Prolonged wildfire seasons have a profound effect on overall wellbeing. Responses to help minimize mental and physical impacts such as the creation of clean-air community shelters, recreation programming, initiatives to support community cohesion, and “go outside when it is not smoky” messaging require further study.
format Article in Journal/Newspaper
author Howard, C.
Rose, C.
Dodd, W.
Scott, P.
Cunsulo-Willox, A.
Orbinski, J.
author_facet Howard, C.
Rose, C.
Dodd, W.
Scott, P.
Cunsulo-Willox, A.
Orbinski, J.
author_sort Howard, C.
title P062: SOS: Summer of Smoke--a mixed-methods, community-based study investigating the health effects of a prolonged, severe wildfire season on a subarctic population
title_short P062: SOS: Summer of Smoke--a mixed-methods, community-based study investigating the health effects of a prolonged, severe wildfire season on a subarctic population
title_full P062: SOS: Summer of Smoke--a mixed-methods, community-based study investigating the health effects of a prolonged, severe wildfire season on a subarctic population
title_fullStr P062: SOS: Summer of Smoke--a mixed-methods, community-based study investigating the health effects of a prolonged, severe wildfire season on a subarctic population
title_full_unstemmed P062: SOS: Summer of Smoke--a mixed-methods, community-based study investigating the health effects of a prolonged, severe wildfire season on a subarctic population
title_sort p062: sos: summer of smoke--a mixed-methods, community-based study investigating the health effects of a prolonged, severe wildfire season on a subarctic population
publisher Springer Science and Business Media LLC
publishDate 2017
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/cem.2017.264
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S1481803517002640
long_lat ENVELOPE(-114.307,-114.307,62.412,62.412)
ENVELOPE(-117.356,-117.356,60.931,60.931)
geographic Dettah
Kakisa
Northwest Territories
Yellowknife
geographic_facet Dettah
Kakisa
Northwest Territories
Yellowknife
genre Northwest Territories
Subarctic
Yellowknife
genre_facet Northwest Territories
Subarctic
Yellowknife
op_source CJEM
volume 19, issue S1, page S99
ISSN 1481-8035 1481-8043
op_doi https://doi.org/10.1017/cem.2017.264
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