Research-Initiatives

Climate change has been recognised by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as the greatest threat to human health. At present, however, there is no comprehensive knowledge of weather- and environment-related acute illnesses, no personalised warning systems for people affected by extreme weather events and no corresponding organisation of the healthcare system. Extreme weather events lead to increased health risks, especially for people who are already exposed, and thus to unpredictable burdens on medical care in the short term. The aim of HABITAT is to develop a functioning forecasting system for predicting individual risks in interdisciplinary cooperation involving artificial intelligence in order to reduce the risks of acute episodes of illness through behavioural adjustments and to be able to predict and plan the allocation of resources in the healthcare system. Four sub-steps are required for this and are implemented in the project:

1. The study of the effects of weather events and environmental factors in interaction with personal characteristics on the incidence, prevalence and pathogenesis of diseases. As “use cases” are considered: : (1) coronary heart disease and insufficiency, (2) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), bronchial asthma and the occurrence and pathogen spectrum of pneumonia and (3) hypertensive disorders in pregnancy (HES).
2. The integration of these findings into AI-based prognostic models for predicting potential acute disease progression.
3. The implementation of the forecasts in a climate-related, digital health application, taking user behaviour into account, and the testing of acute care management in the regional care network on the basis of the forecasts.
4. The development and testing of adaptation strategies for the supply system, taking into account the long-term impact of climate change.