Keeping my cool when the heat is on

I hate to say it, but we’re nearing the end of summer. I love summer, mostly because I love all the green and I love the beach, and summer is my least busy time of year. But this summer has been brutal between the extreme heat warnings constantly and fires that are seemingly everywhere.Our daughter competed in beach volleyball for the first time this summer and it was quite the learning curve for our family. Every single tournament she played in was during an extreme heat warning. At the tournaments, kids were passing out, vomiting and walking away with blistering burns from the sand. We learned to make sure our daughter stayed home, in a climate-controlled environment, the day before a tournament and started really hydrating the day before. My husband and I joke that we’re now ready to volunteer at the Olympics for beach volleyball because we discovered how to get an umbrella over her for shade for her one-minute breaks, all while getting her water, placing the cooling fan around her neck, and getting the cooling towel out of the ice to put over her. It was a lot. The heat was a lot—even for spectators.Read: Reader photo: Dogs love summer, too!I normally don’t have to endure the heat. If it’s too hot outside, I can choose to stay inside. My work is also temperature controlled. And, if I choose to be outside in the heat (with the exception of beach volleyball tournaments), it’s usually at a pool or beach where I can cool off in the water at my leisure.But not everyone is so fortunate. Not everyone has access to air conditioning in their home. Not everyone works in a comfortable environment. Not everyone has work or is housed. I only had to experience these extreme heat warning conditions for nine hours a day and I was miserable and so uncomfortable. I also had the ability to take a break and sit in my air-conditioned car (which I didn’t) or an air-conditioned bar (which I may have done).I also don’t have medical conditions that can put me at risk for heat-related illnesses (such as cardiovascular, respiratory, renal, endocrine, or skin conditions) and I cannot imagine the discomfort in those who have conditions and/or have to endure such heat for longer stretches of time or all the time.I don’t recall ever talking to patients, or hearing anyone else talking to patients, about managing in extreme heat. Sure, we mention not to keep medications in a hot vehicle, but do we ask about how patients are managing the heat? Are they able to access cool environments? If a patient asked, could you direct them to cooling centres nearby? Are we concerned enough about this or are we just so busy we don’t think about this in the moment? Are we aware of patients who may be at risk of heat-related illness? The elderly—I would guess most of us would think of this population, along with infants. Would we know how to help these patients?And what about kids and teens? Or healthy (or seemingly healthy) adults? What about the ones who are playing volleyball or running or playing tennis or another outdoor sport? Do we assume that as athletes, they know how to manage the heat? Or that their coaches are teaching them how to manage the heat? Do we think this is not our place?Perhaps, as pharmacy technicians, we may not think of these things or that this is our place, but we have to remember our role as healthcare professionals. Yes, there is a really big technical component to our role and that is such a large and busy part of our role, but we also have to consider the patient as a whole person beyond their medical conditions and their medications. Remember how important it is to make a connection with patients—get to know them, ask about them. You may be surprised at what you learn about them and how you can offer further support to support their overall health, needs, goals and quality of life.As much as I hate to see summer go, fall is my favourite and I am hoping cooler temperatures are on their way.