Heatwave Safety Advice for Healthcare Professionals and the People We Care For

The UK is in a heatwave. If you’re working in healthcare or looking after a vulnerable relative at home, you’ll be seeing the same thing: heat that turns quickly from uncomfortable to unsafe. Older adults, people with dementia, people with chronic conditions, and people on certain medications are at real risk in temperatures like these.

What matters most this week: knowing who’s most at risk, spotting the difference between heat exhaustion and heatstroke (they need different responses), what to change about the room and the routine when you’re on shift or at home, the medications that raise the risk, and looking after yourself while you’re looking after everyone else.

Who Is Most at Risk in a Heatwave

The people who need the closest eye in a heatwave are the ones you probably already know: the resident who forgets to drink through the afternoon, the person with dementia who can’t tell you they’re too warm, the man who lives alone with only his carer checking in. Their bodies find it harder to cool down, and they can’t always tell you when something’s wrong. That’s the group to watch.

• Older adults. Thermoregulation declines with age, and older people are often on multiple medications that increase risk.
• People with dementia. They may not recognise thirst, may not seek out cooler areas, and may not be able to say when they feel unwell.
• People with learning disabilities. Communication of discomfort can be limited, so more frequent proactive checks matter.
• People with chronic conditions. Heart failure, kidney disease, diabetes, and respiratory conditions all raise heat risk.
• People with limited mobility. They cannot move themselves to cooler areas or adjust their environment.
• People living alone. No one is naturally checking on them. In-home carers and family carers become the safety net.
• Infants and very young children. Relevant to family carers with young relatives at home.

If you are on shift, know which residents or clients fall into these categories and increase your welfare checks accordingly. Every one to two hours during peak heat is a reasonable baseline for anyone in a higher-risk group.

Heat Exhaustion vs Heatstroke: The Critical Distinction

These are two different conditions with two different responses. Heat exhaustion is serious but manageable at the point of care. Heatstroke is a medical emergency. Knowing which one you are looking at can change the outcome.

Before either of these, watch for heat cramps: painful muscle spasms (often in the legs or abdomen), intense thirst, and a fast heart rate but with sweating still present and normal alertness. This is the earliest warning that the body is struggling. Move the person to a cool space, get them to rest, and give them water. It is a signal to increase your monitoring, not to panic, but do not ignore it.

Heat exhaustion signs

• Dizziness or headache
• Sweating (the body is still cooling itself)
• Cool, clammy skin
• Fast pulse
• Nausea or muscle cramps
• Feeling thirsty
• Passing less urine or darker urine than usual

Response to heat exhaustion

Move the person to a cool, shaded area. Loosen tight clothing. Give small sips of cool water. Cool the skin with damp cloths or a fan. Rest for at least thirty minutes. If symptoms are not improving within thirty minutes, escalate to a senior colleague or clinician.

Heatstroke signs (medical emergency)

• Body temperature above 40°C
• Hot, dry skin (sweating has stopped)
• Confusion or disorientation, especially in someone who was previously alert
• Rapid or difficult breathing
• Very fast heart rate
• Seizures or loss of consciousness

Response to heatstroke

Call 999 immediately. While waiting for help, move the person to shade, remove excess clothing, and cool them by any means available: damp cloths on the neck, wrists, and armpits, fan the skin, cool water on the body. Do not give fluids if they are drowsy, disoriented, or unconscious. This is time-critical, so do not wait to see if it improves.

Practical Care Steps You Can Take on Shift

Most heat-related illness is preventable when the room and the routine both adapt to the weather.

Environment

• Keep rooms below 26°C where possible (UKHSA guidance for vulnerable people).
• Close curtains, blinds, or blackout blinds during peak sun (typically 11am to 5pm).
• Ventilate at night once the outside temperature has dropped below the inside temperature.
• Reposition beds and chairs away from direct sunlight.
• Use fans positioned to blow across bowls of ice or damp cloths for stronger cooling. Important: UKHSA guidance is that fans work below 35°C but can raise body temperature above that threshold, so switch them off if the room goes above 35°C.

Body cooling

• Cool damp cloths on wrists, neck, and forehead (pulse points).
• Foot baths with cool (not cold) water.
• Cool showers or baths where mobility and skin condition allow.
• Lightweight, loose-fitting, breathable clothing.
• If residents, clients, or family members spend time outdoors or near sunlit windows: sun hats, SPF 30+ sunscreen, and lightweight cover. Avoid direct sun exposure between 11am and 3pm.

Routine

• Schedule demanding personal care, mobility, and appointments for the cooler morning or evening hours.
• Increase welfare check frequency for at-risk individuals to every one or two hours.
• Note fluid intake and urine output on your daily records. Reduced or dark urine is an early sign of dehydration.

Hydration When the Person Cannot Self-Hydrate

Older people and people with dementia often do not feel or recognise thirst. Waiting for them to ask for water is not a safe strategy in a heatwave.

• Small sips more often is more effective than large volumes occasionally.
• Vary what you offer: water, squash, milk, herbal teas, ice lollies.
• For dysphagia (swallowing difficulties): thickened fluids (Nutilis, Thick and Easy) and ice chips.
• Fruit with high water content: watermelon, cucumber, oranges, strawberries.
• For people with dementia: prompt regularly and offer, do not rely on them asking.
• Keep a fluid intake record where the care plan requires it, and flag reduced intake early.

The Medication Question: What Raises the Risk

Several common medications increase heat-related illness risk. You do not adjust medication yourself, but knowing which medications are on the higher-risk list helps you flag concerns to a GP, senior nurse, or the client’s care team.

• Diuretics (furosemide, bendroflumethiazide): accelerate fluid loss.
• Antipsychotics: impair the body’s ability to regulate temperature.
• Anticholinergic medications (many antidepressants, antihistamines, incontinence medications such as oxybutynin): reduce sweating.
• Beta-blockers: reduce the heart rate response to heat stress.
• ACE inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs): dehydration risk if fluid intake drops.

If a resident is on any of the above and shows signs of heat-related illness, escalate faster than you would for someone not on these medications. Escalate any concerns in line with local policies and the individual’s care plan. Never change or withhold medication yourself.

Looking After Yourself First

You cannot deliver safe care if you’re overheating yourself. This bit isn’t selfish, and it isn’t optional. Hot shifts genuinely take it out of you, and the HCAs and nurses who manage the heat well are the ones who protect themselves first, without guilt about it.

• Carry a small water bottle and refill it often. Frequent small refills work better than one large bottle you sip from occasionally.
• Take your breaks in the coolest space available, not in the same room where you have been on shift.
• Loose scrubs or uniform where the placement allows.
• Watch for your own warning signs: headache, dizziness, feeling faint, muscle cramps, nausea. These are heat exhaustion. Step out of the environment and get support.
• If a placement genuinely does not have adequate cooling or breaks, that is a safety issue worth flagging to your consultant. If you are new to agency work and not yet registered with Medsolve, our guide to registering with a nursing agency covers what the process looks like.

When to Escalate

For the person you care for

• Signs of heatstroke: call 999.
• Heat exhaustion not improving within 30 minutes of cooling: escalate in line with local policies and the individual’s care plan.
• New confusion or disorientation in someone previously alert: escalate immediately, treat as a red flag.
• Anyone on higher-risk medications showing early heat symptoms: escalate as soon as you notice, before symptoms worsen.

For yourself

• Feeling faint, disoriented, or persistently unwell: step out of the environment and get support.
• Concerns about the safety of the placement (no cooling, no breaks, no water access): contact your Medsolve consultant. Our 24-hour on-call means someone is available outside office hours if you need guidance.

If You Are a Family Carer at Home

The same principles apply if you are looking after a vulnerable relative at home. A few home-specific points:

• Older relatives living alone need someone checking in during heatwaves, ideally at least twice a day.
• Check the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) Weather-Health Alert level for your region. Yellow, amber, and red alerts signal escalating action needed.
• Call 999 for suspected heatstroke. It is a time-critical emergency, so use 999 directly.
• If your relative has complex or clinical needs and you would like nurse-led support during hot weather or beyond, Medsolve Complex Care provides nurse-led home care packages across the North West, North East, and North Wales.

How Medsolve Supports You On Shift

Whether it’s a heatwave or a normal week, there are a few things Medsolve does to keep you supported at work:

• A 24-hour on-call service means someone is always available for advice, escalation, or support outside office hours. If you are on shift and unsure, call.
• Your consultant is available during working hours for placement-specific questions and concerns.
• If you have concerns about a placement’s safety, tell your consultant. We work with clients to keep placements safe.

If you’re a healthcare professional across the North East, North West, or North Wales and you’d like to work with Medsolve, you can register your interest and a consultant will be in touch.

Quick Reference Summary

For sharing, for printing, for the notice board in the staff room.

• Room temperature below 26°C where possible.
• Welfare checks every one to two hours for at-risk individuals.
• Small sips of fluid more often, not large volumes occasionally.
• Cool damp cloths on pulse points (wrists, neck).
• Watch for confusion in someone previously alert (red flag).
• Heat exhaustion: cool, hydrate, rest, escalate if not improving in 30 minutes.
• Heatstroke (temp above 40°C, hot dry skin, confusion, loss of consciousness): 999 immediately.
• Check the resident’s medications for diuretics, antipsychotics, anticholinergics, beta-blockers.
• Look after yourself. You cannot deliver safe care if you are overheating.

Heatwaves are hard on everyone in care. Look after each other, look after yourselves, and don’t hesitate to call your consultant if something doesn’t feel right on shift.

Sources and Further Reading

For clinical guidance on heat exhaustion and heatstroke, see the NHS page on heat exhaustion and heatstroke.

For the current alert status in your region, check the UKHSA Weather-Health Alerts service. The Heat-Health Alert season runs from 1 June to 30 September.

For deeper clinical detail on caring for older adults during hot weather, the British Geriatrics Society summary of UKHSA guidance for healthcare professionals is a good next read.

This blog is for guidance only. It is not a substitute for professional clinical advice or the care plan for the individual you are supporting. In a medical emergency call 999.