{
  "abstract": "Background Climate change increases extreme weather exposure, causing risk to public health. Previous evidence links extreme temperature with increased call volume to ambulance control rooms. The HOT-AMBO study examined relationships between temperature and length of ambulance service resource use, especially at the 5% extremes of temperature. Knowledge of this relationship could allow weather forecast-based resourcing.Methods West Midlands Ambulance Service University NHS Foundation Trust supplied call data for January1st – December 31st 2023. Multiple linear regression models considered temperature at call time/location and length of resource use - accounting for time of day, age, gender, Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD), public holiday and weekends. Total length of all resource use (TRU) and dual crewed ambulances (DCA) use specifically were analysed.Results 1,463,594 calls were included in analysis. Mean call temperature was 11.6°C (SD 5.81°C). Across all temperatures, mean TRU decreased by 5.8 seconds (95%CI 8.6 - 3.1 p<0.001) from coldest to hottest. Within the hottest 5% of calls, mean TRU increased by 90 seconds per °C increase (95%CI 44 - 136 p<0.001). Conversely, TRU decreased by 70 seconds per °C decrease (95%CI 24 - 115 p0.003) at the coldest 5%. DCA resource use showed similar pattern - 72.2 seconds (95%CI 31.7 – 112.8 p<0.001) per °C increase at extreme heat, and 67.1 seconds (95%CI 24.8 – 109.4 p=0.002) per °C at extreme cold.Conclusions No operationally meaningful linear relationship between temperature and TRU across the full range of observed temperatures was found. Extreme heat extended length of resource use to the point where additional crews would be required to maintain minimum average service provision, whilst extreme cold had the opposite effect. The data included milder than average winter temperatures – extreme cold was relatively rare. Expanding the cohort area and timescale may develop richer insights for future emergency planning within UK ambulance services.",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "West Midlands Ambulance Service University NHS Foundation Trust, Brierley Hill, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Owen Stanley"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Brittany Blankinship"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Nynke Halbesma"
    }
  ],
  "title": "PP41 Effects of temperature on length of resource use: results from the HOT-AMBO study",
  "uid": "3bfa499d-f238-5ad3-b744-35e59a6bf739"
}