Impact of environment on human health and performance: Working during extreme heat

Summary

Based on the Health & Safety Executive Guidance (HSE (2013) INDG451 ‘Heat Stress in the workplace’), Dr Susan Whalley-Lloyd has produced a document and flowchart addressing what happens to us when we experience extreme heat. This can be the result of extreme outside air temperature due to the weather or heat build-up in a work area due to equipment generating heat, or restricted workspace, or large areas of glass within a building, or air conditioning problems or windows that won’t open, or a combination of conditions eg high energy tasks whilst wearing PPE and few rest breaks for fluid intake.