First Prize for Research on Heat and Cardiovascular Health: Julia Nawaro Honoured by Lombardy Region
Julia Nawaro has been awarded first prize in the 7th edition of Valutare Premia, a competition established by the Lombardy Region to recognize outstanding master’s graduates and Ph.D. holders whose theses analyse and evaluate regional public policies.
She received the award for her thesis, “Healthy Smart Cities – Development of Healthcare-Focused Urban Analytics Models and Decision-Making Tools to Reduce the Impact of Heat Waves on Public Health,” conducted under the supervision of Prof. Enrico Caiani, within the PhD program on Data Analytics and Decision Science.
At a time when climate change is intensifying heatwaves worldwide, Nawaro’s research offers practical solutions to help cities better protect public health. Focusing on Italy — and particularly on Milan — the study develops advanced data-driven tools to better understand and potentially anticipate the impact of cardiovascular emergencies linked to extreme heat.
The research, exploiting geolocalized ambulance dispatches database made available from the Lombardy Regional Agency for Emergency and Urgency (AREU), shows that when temperatures rise above a critical threshold, heart-related ambulance dispatches increase by approximately 11%, with fatal and outdoor incidents particularly affected. The study also identifies 18 neighbourhoods in Milan — home to more than 300,000 residents — as especially vulnerable due to factors such as higher local temperatures and a greater proportion of elderly residents.
By integrating artificial intelligence into the analysis, the study successfully predicts next-day cardiovascular emergencies based on weather conditions, providing emergency medical services with valuable support for planning and resource allocation during heatwaves.
Overall, the findings offer concrete guidance for policymakers, urban planners, and healthcare authorities working to build healthier, more resilient cities in the face of climate change.