CATEGORY A – Conduct a gap analysis to understand the challenges in gathering data for underreported vulnerable populations Some populations in New York State are more vulnerable to extreme heat than others. These vulnerable populations include, for example, individuals experiencing homelessness, expectant mothers, migrant workers, incarcerated individuals, and seniors living in isolation. There are challenges to studying the impacts of extreme heat on these vulnerable populations due to transience, fluid status, and other factors that lead to their underreporting. Better data and information are needed to support solutions that address the health impacts of heat on these vulnerable populations and would enable. Quantified analyses of heat-related health as well as enable solutions tailored to particular situations and experiences of these populations. To begin remedying these data gaps, a project selected under this category would focus on exploring the data and information missing from heat-vulnerable populations, including, but not limited to, those listed above. Project goals include the following: • Identify which vulnerable populations have data gaps. • Consider the use cases for the data and identify what information and inputs are needed to study heat-related health outcomes for vulnerable populations or to support actionable solutions to the heat impacts on these populations. Identify what data sources, if any, are available that may help to fill those information gaps (e.g., heat vulnerability index data sources, neo-natal network).
