Heat Protection for Vulnerable Groups: Care Facilities, Daycare Centres, Hospitals

In short. Heat does not affect everyone equally. Older people, people in need of care, the chronically ill, pregnant women and small children carry the highest risk. Protecting these groups determines how strongly a heatwave translates into illness and death. Much of this can be implemented organisationally and without major investment, provided the procedures are in place before summer.

Why this matters for your municipality. Heat-related deaths are heavily concentrated among older people and those with pre-existing conditions. The Robert Koch Institute estimates around 2,800 heat-related deaths for 2024; by calendar week 33 of summer 2026, the figure was already around 15,800 (as of: RKI, 27 August 2026), with the vast majority in older age groups. Municipalities reach these people through care facilities, social services, the public health department and daycare centres, which is exactly where effective heat protection begins.

Who belongs to the vulnerable groups?

Particularly at risk are older people, whose temperature regulation and sense of thirst decline, people in need of care and bedridden persons, the chronically ill (cardiovascular, respiratory, diabetes), people on certain medications, pregnant women, and infants and small children. In addition, there are socially isolated persons and homeless people who depend on being approached externally. The key is not to know these groups in the abstract, but to know where they are located in your municipality.

Which measures protect people in care facilities and hospitals?

In care facilities and hospitals, clear procedures prove effective: regular prompts to drink and documentation of fluid intake, cool rooms as refuges, adjusted medication administration in consultation with doctors, shading and night-time ventilation, and trained staff who recognise warning signs. Many facilities follow model heat protection plans; the municipality can initiate and support this networking.

How do you protect children in daycare centres and schools?

Children overheat faster and often drink too little. Effective measures include: shaded outdoor areas, moving activities to cooler times of day, fixed drinking rules, adjusted excursions, and, where existing buildings allow, structural shading on the hottest facades. It is important that the facilities actually receive the heat warning, the warning chain from the heat action plan must also reach daycare centres and schools.

What role does the administration play?

The municipality can rarely act directly within every facility, but it organises the framework: forwarding warnings, designating contact persons, providing public cool spaces and drinking fountains, coordinating outreach services for isolated people, and networking facilities. The heat action plan is the instrument that makes these tasks binding.

The honest limitation. The municipality does not reach everyone, socially isolated people in their own homes in particular are hard to protect. And many measures depend on the facilities themselves; the municipality can support them but not force them. It also cannot be determined from a distance where your vulnerable groups are concentrated; this requires local data.

When KomAdapt is worthwhile. To direct protective measures to where exposure and vulnerability coincide, KomAdapt's risk and exposure analysis combines thermal exposure with the locations of care facilities, daycare centres and hospitals. This shows you which facilities lie in the hottest areas and need priority attention.

_Why are older people particularly at risk from heat?_ With age, temperature regulation and the sense of thirst decline, and chronic illnesses and medications are often added. Many live alone and notice overheating too late. _What can care facilities do in the short term?_ Consistent prompts to drink, cool refuge rooms, shading, night-time ventilation and trained staff. Many measures require no investment, just fixed procedures. _How does the municipality reach socially isolated people?_ Through outreach services, cooperation with care services, neighbourhood initiatives and welfare associations. This group can hardly be reached completely, but coordinated outreach significantly increases the chances. _Are there model heat protection plans for facilities?_ Yes, for care facilities, hospitals and other settings, including in the context of the Federal Ministry of Health's heat protection plan for health, which has been continuously developed since 2023. The municipality can promote its dissemination and networking.

Inbound links should be set from: urban-heat, heat-action-plan-municipalities, identifying-heat-hotspots.