Watching the World Burn: The Health Impacts of Wildfires (Wilderness Medicine Interest Group- and Climate Change and Health Interest Group-Sponsored)

As climate change intensifies, wildfires are becoming more frequent, overwhelming emergency departments (EDs) with patients suffering from respiratory and other conditions. This session equips emergency medicine (EM) physicians with the knowledge and tools to respond to the increasing prevalence of wildfires and advocate for change. The session begins by explaining how climate change drives wildfire frequency and intensity and the subsequent health challenges, including the long-term impact on communities and emergency personnel. Attendees will explore the role of EM physicians in advocating for climate action and improving disaster response. The session will conclude with a breakout discussion, giving participants the opportunity to share their experiences, response strategies, and ideas for mitigating the effects of climate disasters.

Learning Objectives:

Upon completion of this session, participants should be able to:
  • Understand how climate change leads to wildfires via the climate feedback loop
  • Learn the various health impacts of wildfires
  • Understand how EM frontline workers can protect themselves while treating patients and advocating for the planet
  • Learn from the real-world experiences of other participants

Presenters:

  • Kevin Watkins, MD, FACEP, FAWM
  •  Joshua C. Timpe, MD
  • Gayle Kouklis, MD
  • Alyssa Valentyne, MD
Authors

  • Kevin Watkins, MD, FACEP, FAWM

    Cleveland Clinic Akron General

    Kevin Watkins is APD at Cleveland Clinic Akron General, where he is ultrasound faculty, leads EKG education, and is director of wilderness medicine. He is a WLS-MP instructor and serves as Research Director for the Cuyahoga Valley Wilderness Medicine Group. He serves on the Wilderness Medical Society student/resident education committee and is Chair Elect for the SAEM wilderness medicine interest group.

  • Joshua C. Timpe, MD

    Medical College of Wisconsin

    Dr. Joshua Timpe is an emergency medicine physician and educator at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), where he serves as the Assistant Program Director for the Emergency Medicine Residency program and the Director of the Wilderness and Environmental Medicine program.

    He is actively involved in resident and medical student education at MCW, where he directs the Wilderness Medicine Elective and the Wilderness Medicine track, preparing future physicians for the unique challenges of practicing medicine in austere environments.

  • Gayle Kouklis

    Resident physician in Emergency Medicine

    UCSF Fresno

    Gayle Kouklis, MD is an emergency medicine physician practicing in Seattle and the California Central Valley. She is also a University of Colorado Climate Change and Health Science Policy Fellow. She completed her undergraduate degree in Human Biology at University of California, Santa Cruz, her medical degree at University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, and her residency training at University of California, San Francisco/Fresno. Her main interests include extreme heat in a multitude of environments ranging from the agricultural California Central Valley and its urban centers to the Arctic and Subarctic regions of Alaska. She also has an interest in urban tree canopy and other nature-based climate solutions and the importance of biodiversity in human health. She values community perspective and designs much of her work as community-based participatory research in an attempt to bring together health equity and environmental justice. She grew up in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada and is an avid backpacker and trail runner, an aspiring fly fisherwoman and climber, and an enthusiastic eater and chef.

  • Alyssa Valentyne, MD

    University of Michigan

    Alyssa Valentyne is a chief resident at the University of Michigan. She is also chair of the SAEM Climate Change and Health Interest Group. Alyssa is passionate about healthcare sustainability and how climate change impacts health. She helps lead the EM Green Team and assisted in developing a Climate Health & Sustainability Professional Development Track at the University of Michigan. She also helps lead the medical student wilderness medicine elective and is working towards her Fellowship in the Academy of Wilderness Medicine (FAWM). Alyssa earned her medical degree, path of distinction in public health, and global health certificate from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. 

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