Background Excessive heat is a leading weather-related cause of fatalities in the USA. Vulnerable populations can face greater exposure to health risks during extreme heat events. The aim of this study is to examine the effects of excessive heat and community-level social vulnerability on morbidity in San Antonio, Texas, in 2018. Methods Heat Index (HI) data are from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Social vulnerability is measured using the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention’s Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). Morbidity is measured as the number of emergency medical service (EMS) incidents. Sixty-one zip codes were analysed for the 153 constrained calendar days from 1 May to 30 September 2018. Negative binomial regression analysis with the time-stratified case-crossover design was conducted to predict the effects of HI and SVI on the rate of EMS incidents. Results HI is significantly and positively associated with the rate of EMS incidents. Social vulnerability has a statistically significant association with EMS incidents, with higher levels of community-level social vulnerability associated with higher rates of EMS incidents. The effect of the HI on the rate of EMS incidents is significantly and positively moderated by the SVI. Conclusions Social vulnerability and excessive heat increase the rate of EMS incidents. As the number of excessive heat days increases and San Antonio continues to have extreme disparities by location, there will be an effect on health systems, including EMSs.

Extreme heat events pose a threat to human health. Forecasting and warning strategies have been developed to mitigate heat-health hazards. Yet, studies have found that the public lacks knowledge about their heat-health risks and preventive actions to take to reduce risks. Local governmental websites are an important means to communicate preparedness to the public. The purpose of this study is to examine information provided to the public on municipal government web pages of the 10 most populous U.S. cities. A two-level document and content analyses were conducted. A direct content analysis was conducted using federal government websites and documents to create the Extreme Heat Event Public Response Rubric. The rubric contains two broad categories of populations and actions that are further specified. The rubric was then used to examine local government extreme heat event websites for the 10 most populous cities in the United States. The examination of the local government sites found that information included on the websites failed to identify the breadth of populations at greater risk for adverse heat-health outcomes and omitted some recommended actions designed to prevent adverse heat-health events. Local governments often communicated concrete and simple content to the public but more complex information was not included on their websites. Significance Statement: Extreme heat is the leading weather-related cause of mortality in the United States annually. Public response to extreme heat events requires that the public understand their risk and know the actions to take to mitigate that risk. The public seeks information from local government websites. Our results found that many local government websites did not provide the information to the public on the array of conditions and factors that put people at a greater risk for an adverse heat-health event, nor did the websites include information on the variety of actions that the public should take in response to an extreme heat event in order to reduce their risks. Addressing the omission of the information on these websites may improve public response to extreme heat events.

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, there were high rates of food and housing insecurity and unmet childcare, clothing, and physical and mental health needs among community college students. There was a growing body of evidence linking these unmet needs to adverse educational outcomes. In response, many community colleges had started to develop basic needs initiatives directed at addressing these unmet essential needs to make college feasible. The Covid-19 pandemic created enormous economic and logistical challenges for all sectors, including community colleges. The purpose of this study was to explore changes in community college student basic needs services and programs. An online survey of administrators at Texas community colleges designated as Hispanic-Serving Institutions was administered in late fall 2020. Administrators were asked about 19 basic needs initiative areas. The results indicate an overall decrease in the number of basic needs initiative programs and services at the community colleges during the pandemic. While specific service provision areas, such as food, childcare, clothing, and training, had the greatest decline, programming directed at financial assistance, mental health referrals, student employment, and on-campus physical health services increased.

Objectives: Exposure to extreme heat events increases the risk for negative birth outcomes, including preterm birth. This study sought to determine the presence and content of web-based heat health information for pregnant people provided by federal, state, and local government public health websites. Methods: This website content analysis consisted of 17 federal, 50 state, and 21 city websites, and noted which of 25 recognized pregnancy heat health data elements were included. Data for the analysis were collected from March 12, 2022, through March 16, 2022. Results: The search identified 17 federal websites, 38 state websites, and 19 city websites with heat health information. Within these, only seven websites listed pregnant people as a vulnerable or at-risk population, and only six websites provided information related to heat health specifically for pregnancy. Of the 25 themes recognized as important for pregnancy risk during extreme heat exposure, only 11 were represented within these 6 websites. Conclusion: The presence of web-based pregnancy heat health information is infrequent and limited in content. Boosting web-based publication of extreme heat and pregnancy risks could mitigate negative maternal and child health outcomes.

Many post-secondary institutions have implemented anti-poverty programs to address students’ basic needs insecurities. This study examined the provision of 17 types of basic needs programs at Texas Hispanic-serving institutions over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic with the aim to identify changes in the number and types of programs offered as well as factors that may influence the presence of specific types of basic needs programs on campus. While the average number of basic needs programs per institution varied little over time, the specific types of programs that were offered changed. Institution type as a 2-year or 4-year institution was associated with providing on-campus mental health services, on-campus physical health services, and after-school care for students’ children at pre-pandemic and anticipated post-pandemic time points and employing students and free food or meal vouchers at the pre-pandemic time point. The percentage of students receiving Pell Grants was associated with basic needs programs to assist students applying for public services and referrals to off-campus health services pre-pandemic and anticipated post-pandemic. The presence of an on-campus free food pantry was associated with the percentage of students receiving Pell Grants at the anticipated post-pandemic time point only. Over the course of the pandemic, there were changes to the types of basic needs programs offered. Some types of basic needs programs were associated with institutional and/or student characteristics. Given the continued presence of basic needs programs through the course of the pandemic and into the post-pandemic period, the use of these kinds of programs and services to support students, while influenced by external factors such as the pandemic, appears institutionally established as a way to facilitate going to college for students in need.