About Heat Related Illness Data
This indicator estimates the number and rate of hospitalization and emergency department visits for heat stress. It includes all cases where heat stress is listed as a primary or other diagnosis. These data come from hospital records and may not capture the full range of heat-related illness if exposure to excess heat is not explicitly documented. These data can be used to document changes over place and time, monitor vulnerable areas and populations and evaluate the results of local climate-adaptation strategies.
Our heat-related illness data come from emergency department visits and hospitalizations. Heat-related illness data include:
- Health outcome (heat stress)
- State and county of residence
- Year of hospitalization or emergency department visit
Our heat-related illness data do not include:
- Out-of-state residents whose illness occurred in Tennessee
- Tennessee residents whose illness occurred out-of-state