Climate Risk Assessment for Victorian HospitalsAssessing impacts of extreme weather events to regional hospitals and health services

Infrastructure faces disruption from a changing climate. For the state of Victoria, in Australia, the government anticipates more severe weather and intense rainfall events, more hot days and potential bushfires, and rising sea levels. Victoria’s infrastructure strategy 2021–2051 recommended strategic reviews of the climate change consequences for infrastructure, including hospitals.

Aurecon was appointed to undertake a climate risk assessment at six regional hospitals across Victoria. The project analysed each hospital’s exposure to flooding, extreme heat, grassfire and bushfire. It was delivered in a partnership with Department of Health and Emergency Management Victoria (EMV).

Assessing climate hazard risk to six regional hospitals

The team undertook desktop analysis of historic weather patterns for each region, mapping them to projected temperature and extreme weather trends, to create site-specific climatic projections. Engagement with key stakeholders in water, planning, and emergency services was pivotal in sourcing data, identifying local risks and existing actions to mitigate and respond to those risks.

On-site assessments were also conducted to analyse hospital infrastructure, obtain feedback from hospital staff, and workshop the challenges and opportunities related to adapting to climate-related risks.

The emerging themes: infrastructure and services vulnerable

While climate risk is specific to each hospital location, several consistent themes emerged:

• Centralised hospital locations: Although hospital locations vary, it was generally found that the centralised location of hospitals in towns largely protected assets from the direct impacts of severe weather events.
• Service delivery vulnerabilities: During climate-related events, hospital services are at greater risk than hospital buildings. For example, access to and from the hospital, and the reliance on external sources for critical services such as utilities and supplies, present challenges for the effective delivery of health services during severe weather events.
• Aged care at risk: Aged care facilities were shown to be more exposed to severe weather events given aged care patients are broadly more susceptible to climate extremes and the inherent risks associated with evacuation.

Findings from the assessment also highlighted the interdependencies of climate change impacts across sectors. For example, storms uprooting trees may disrupt access for emergency services, and restrict access to hospitals.