Aging and Climate Change: Karl Pillemer, Leslie Wharton, & Ruth McDermott-Levy

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GeriPal - A Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine Podcast 47 min 2 speakers 8 chapters transcribed 8 hours ago

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What is the main focus of the episode on aging and climate change?

Eric Widera 0:00

Welcome to the GerrPal podcast. This is Eric Wadera. This is Alex Smith. And Alex, who do we have with us today?

Alex Smith 0:07

Today we're delighted to welcome Carl Pilimer, who's a sociologist and gerontologist. He's professor of human development at Cornell University and of gerontology and medicine at Wild Cornell Medicine. Carl, welcome to the Jerry Powell podcast.

Dr. Carl Pillemer 0:23

Well, and thanks for having me. Looking forward to it.

Alex Smith 0:26

And we're delighted to welcome Leslie Wharton, who is seventy two year old retired attorney and leader of the grassroots organization, Elders Climate Action. Leslie, welcome to the JerryPal podcast.

Leslie Wharton 0:38

Thank you. I look forward to our conversation.

Alex Smith 0:41

And we're delighted to welcome Ruth McDermott Levy, who is professor in the College of Nursing at Villanova University and co-director of the Mid Atlantic Center for Children's Health and the Environment. Ruth, welcome to JerryPal.

Ruth McDermott-Levy 0:54

Thank you. It's good

Eric Widera 0:54

to be here. So we're gonna be talking about aging and climate change. But before we go into that, we always ask for a song request. Who does a song request for Alex? That's Ruth. Ruth, you got a song request?

Ruth McDermott-Levy 1:08

Yeah, I would like to hear it's the end of the world as we know it.

Eric Widera 1:12

I'm gonna ask, why did you pick this song? Are you are you a a nihilist? Are we doomed, Ruth?

Ruth McDermott-Levy 1:19

Well, you know, I when you get into the the climate change literature, it would seem we are. But uh believe it or not, I am an optimist. And I also believe in in the capacity of human ingenuity. So I think we can work our way out of this, but we have a lot of work to do.

Alex Smith 1:37

And I love this song. I mean, I absolutely love this song. This takes me back to high school. There's this uh high school band that used to play this song called Dog Odd. And uh we used to dance to it in the high school cafeteria at the high school parties and night. Love this song. So thank you for the opportunity to sing this one. See if I get these tongue twister lyrics correct.

1:59

That's great, it starts with an earthquake, birds and snakes in their planes, and Lenny Bruce is not afraid you'll go. I am a hurricane. Listen to yourself turn. World's surgeon's own needs. Don't misser your own needs. Speed it up a notch speed, grunt, no strength. And the fear of hike down hype, wire and a fire representing seven games and a government for hire and a combat sight.

Why did Ruth choose “It's the End of the World as We Know It” as the song request?

2:25

Leftur wasn't coming in a hurry with the fear is breathing down your neck. Team by team reporters baffled Trump Kevin Croft and look at that low plane fine then uh oh overflow population common droop it'll do save yourself serve yourself world serves its own needs listen to your heartbeat tell me with the rapture and the reverend in the right right you vitriolic patriotic slam fight bright light feeling pretty sight It's the end of the world as we know it It's the end of the world as we know it. It's the end of the world as we know it. And I feel fine.

Eric Widera 3:12

Alex was gonna take the whole podcast just seeing that some

Ruth McDermott-Levy 3:16

Great job.

Eric Widera 3:19

Well, Ruth, thanks for the song request. Maybe we can dive into this topic around aging and climate change. When we think about this, are we already seeing the effects in older adults on climate change? And what are those health effects?

Ruth McDermott-Levy 3:36

The answer is yes, we are already seeing effects. And you know, they're they're pretty much every body system when we think about um the older adult. Who has it most older adults have pre existing conditions or comorbidities and so Any uh additional stressor such as heat. or an extreme weather event or having to move from your home because of a climate rel related disaster um can really tax an older adult whose kind of window of resilience is more limited. You know, as we age our our body's capacity to adapt to things becomes a little more um challenged. And so, you know, we do see hospital emissions for um heat exposure and certainly um cardiovascular and respiratory um problems related to air pollution with climate change um and and and also cognitive problems um you know because of the challenge of of those stressors we can get you know people with some confusion and and delirium and those sort of issues can also be a problem so

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Chapters

8 chapters

1 What is the main focus of the episode on aging and climate change? 0:00–2:25 2 Why did Ruth choose “It's the End of the World as We Know It” as the song request? 2:25–10:06 3 How are older adults already experiencing health effects from climate change? 10:06–17:41 4 What does Elders Climate Action do to empower seniors in climate advocacy? 17:41–24:19 5 What resources does the Aging and Climate Change Clearinghouse provide for researchers and activists? 24:19–31:43 6 How can the healthcare sector reduce its own carbon footprint and influence climate policy? 31:43–38:10 7 What practical steps can nurses and clinicians take to prepare older patients for climate‑related emergencies? 38:10–43:53 8 What actions does the host hope listeners will take after hearing this discussion? 43:53–47:24

Speakers

2 identified

Alex Smith 5 min Eric Widera 5 min

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Topics in this episode

EPA 1 Alex Smith 1 HHS 1 Eric Widera 1 VA 1 heat pump 1 Carl Pillemer 2 Elders Climate Action 2 aging and climate change 1 Leslie Wharton 2 Ruth McDermott Levy 2 Healthcare Without Harm 1

Source

Recorded07 Dec 2023

Publisherrss.libsyn.com ↗

Transcriptspeaker-named · 100+ languages

Handlerec:20524574

Show notes

To my teenagers, climate change is an existential crisis. It's the end of the world as we know it. They decry the lack of serious attention and prioritization this issue has in the US. My kids ask - why don't adults care about this issue the same way that they and their friends care about it? My kids have taught me that the emphasis on personal responsibility (reduce your carbon footprint!) was supported by the fossil fuel industry, because it shifted responsibility for change from industry to individuals. Voting and emailing congress to advocate for systemic change (e.g. less reliance on fossil fuels) likely has a greater impact than recycling your newspaper. Today we find inspiration for my kids: there are adults who care deeply about this issue, particularly for older adults who are much more vulnerable to health effects of climate change. Karl Pillemer is a sociologist and gerontologist who studies this issue and has created a platform called, "Aging and Climate Change Clearinghouse," that is a wide tent with room for older adults, researchers, and organizations. As a researcher, I found the bibliography fascinating, including this gem by the gerontologist Rick Moody on the moral obligation of older adults to address climate change. Leslie Wharton is a leader in the 26,000 member grassroots organization Elders Climate Action, which organizes older adults to create communities engaged in making a difference at local, state, and national levels. As she notes, these volunteer activities can bring meaning and purpose, in the face of a seemingly insurmountable problem, to the elders in her organization. And we talk with Ruth McDermott-Levy, who wrote a practical guide for discharge planning in the era of climate change (example - a generator safety checklist). Ruth advocates for and teaches about aging and climate change at Villanova, and calls on nurse scientists and other health researchers to study climate change. -@AlexSmithMD Additional links: JAMA paper on clinical research risks, climate change, and health Geriatric medicine in the era of climate change Health Care Without Harm: https://noharm.org/ Practice Green Health: https://practicegreenhealth.org/ Global Consortium for Climate and Health Education: https://www.publichealth.columbia.edu/research/programs/global-consortium-climate-health-education

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