Mass General doctor’s first impressions of new heat risk tool [Video]

FIVE AT 535 ON YOUR HEALTH TONIGHT. PROTECTING YOUR FAMILY FROM HOT TEMPERATURES THIS SUMMER. THERE’S NOW A NEW NATIONAL TOOL TO HELP YOU MEASURE THE RISK. HERE TO EXPLAIN IS DOCTOR ALI RAJA, DEPUTY CHAIR OF THE DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE AT MASS GENERAL HOSPITAL. GOOD TO SEE YOU, DOCTOR. YOU TOO. JESSICA. ALL RIGHT. DOCTOR. ROGER. MORE THAN TWO THIRDS OF ALL AMERICANS WERE UNDER HEAT ALERTS LAST YEAR. CERTAINLY. WE’VE HAD SOME HOT DAYS, EVEN HERE IN NEW ENGLAND. SO WHAT’S THE IMPACT ON YOUR AIR? IT’S PRETTY SIGNIFICANT. BEN. SO BETWEEN MAY AND SEPTEMBER, WE DEFINITELY SEE MORE HEAT RELATED ILLNESSES AND OTHER TIMES OF THE YEAR. BUT IT’S NOT JUST US. LIKE YOU SAID, IT’S IT’S A GROWING TREND ACROSS THE COUNTRY. SO JUST THIS PAST WEEK, THE CDC PUBLISHED DATA THAT SHOWED THAT THE INCIDENCE OF HEAT RELATED ILLNESS SEEN IN EMERGENCY DEPARTMENTS HAS …