2025-26 Project (Moreira Pescarini & Sanchez Clemente & Pearce)

Differential impacts of climate on health among migrant and ethnic minoritised groups in the UK and Brazil

SUPERVISORY TEAM

Supervisor

Dr Julia Moreira Pescarini at LSHTM
Email: julia.pescarini1@lshtm.ac.uk

Co-Supervisor

Dr Nuria Sanchez Clemente at City St George’s
Email: nsanchez@sgul.ac.uk

Co-Supervisor

Professor Neil Pearce at LSHTM
Email: Neil.Pearce@lshtm.ac.uk

PROJECT SUMMARY

Project Summary

Climate change is leading to increased temperatures and heat extremes that can lead to higher morbidity and mortality. However, there is a lack of research on the disproportionate effects of extreme heat on communities living in poverty and that has been historically racialised or invisibilised from governmental actions. This project aims to investigate the disproportionate impact of changes in heat on the morbidity and hospitalisation of migrants and minoritised children and adolescents in Brazil and the UK; as well as will include the co-designing of adaptation strategies with migrant and minoritised communities. The results of this study and the co-designed policies will contribute to the adaptation of minoritised children and adolescents to the health effects of heat.

Project Key Words

Migrant, children, climate change, heat, morbidity

MRC LID Themes

  1. Global Health
  2. Health Data Science

Skills

MRC Core Skills

  1. Quantitative skills
  2. Interdisciplinary skills

Skills we expect a student to develop/acquire whilst pursuing this project

In pursuing this project, the student will develop quantitative skills related to the epidemiologic analysis of Brazilian and UK datasets and interdisciplinary skills related to investigating the effects of heat on health of minoritised groups of children.  The student will have opportunities to participate in specialized training via standard accredited modules at LSHTM or St. George’s.   

Over the course of their studies, the student will gain experience in critical thinking, coordination of international collaborations, acquisition of ethical approval, conduct of systematic reviews/meta-analyses, engagement with local stakeholders and policymakers, and dissemination of research findings via participation in international conferences and publication in peer-reviewed journals.    

The student will also have access to general courses on doctoral skills and data protection/management through the Bloomsbury Postgraduate Skills Network (https://doctoral-skills.ucl.ac.uk/bloomsbury/list-training.pht#).

Routes

Which route/s are available with this project?

  • 1+4 = Yes
  • +4 = Yes

Possible Master’s programme options identified by supervisory team for 1+4 applicants:

  • LSHTM – MSc Climate Change & Planetary Health
  • LSHTM – MSc Epidemiology
  • LSHTM – MSc Health Data Science
  • LSHTM – MSc Medical Statistics

Full-time/Part-time Study

Is this project available for full-time study? Yes
Is this project available for part-time study? Yes

Location & Travel

Students funded through MRC LID are expected to work on site at their primary institution, meeting – at the minimum – the institutional research degree regulations and expectations. Students may also be required to travel for conferences (up to 3 over the duration of the studentship), and for any required training (for research degree study). Other travel expectations and opportunities highlighted by the supervisory team are noted below.

Primary location for duration of this research degree: LSHTM, London

Travel requirements for this project: Yes. It is envisaged visits or expend some time at the Brazilian Center for Data and Knowledge Integration for Health from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation in Salvador.

Eligibility/Requirements

Particular prior educational requirements for a student undertaking this project

  • Minimum LSHTM institutional eligibility criteria for doctoral study.
  • BSc/MSc (or equivalent) in epidemiology, medical statistics, global health, environmental health or a related field.

Other useful information

  • Potential Industrial CASE (iCASE) conversion? = No

PROJECT IN MORE DETAIL

Scientific description of this research project

Climate change is leading to increased temperatures and heat extremes that can lead to higher morbidity and mortality. However, there is a lack of research on the disproportionate effects of extreme heat on communities living in poverty and that has been historically racialised or invisibilised from governmental actions.   

Objectives 
This project aims to investigate the disproportionate impact of changes in heat on migrants and minoritised children.  The specific objectives are to: 
1. Systematically examine the literature on the effects of heat on morbidity and hospitalisation in children and adolescents and explore if these vary by poverty status, among those of minoritised backgrounds (e.g., migrant and ethnic minoritised groups). 
2. Investigate the impacts of extreme heat on hospitalisations in children and adolescents among migrants and non-migrants in Brazil. 
3. Investigate the impacts of extreme heat on hospitalisations in children and adolescents in migrants and non-migrants in the UK/EU. 
4. Co-design policies or strategies to mitigate the effects of heat on health in minoritised affected communities.   

Techniques 
The project will leverage linked health, social and climate data from Brazil and the UK. To address objective 1, a systematic review and metanalysis should be used to summarise the literature on the topic worldwide. To address objective 2, the students should use data of the 100 Million Brazilian Cohort, which is a cohort of linked socioeconomic and health data comprising over 140 million individuals applying for social benefits in Brazil. Climate and environmental data at census tract level is currently being linked to individual level data at place of residence. To address objective 3, the student will apply for access to the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD) using the LSHTM licence. CPRD contains UK-wide linked primary and secondary care records, as well as Office of National Statistics data to enable the linkage of mortality data. This dataset will be linked to climate data to enable the study of the effect of heat on hospitalisations in children and adolescents. The number and type of admissions will be compared between migrants and non-migrants of different ethnic/racial background using a validated codelist to identify migrants within the 100 Million Brazilian Cohort or CPRD. Cox proportional models and case-crossover analysis that are appropriate for cohort designs shall be used to evaluate the effects of heat in each subgroup. 

For the co-design element of the study, the student will have the opportunity to engage with a Migrant Health Community Research Network established at St. George’s University. This is a group of over 60 individuals with diverse lived experience of migration and experts by experience, some of which have been involved in the co-design of research already. In addition, there will be the possibility of engaging with other community advocacy groups in the UK and Brazil. The student will develop skills in community engagement and learn from the expertise of members of this group. They will then leverage the connections within this group to discuss and disseminate the results of their research within the networks established.   

Potential risks 
The data to be used in this project is already available in Brazil and collaborations are being established to access UK data.

Further reading

Relevant preprints and/or open access articles:
(DOI = Digital Object Identifier)

Additional information from the supervisory team

The supervisory team has provided a recording for prospective applicants who are interested in their project. This recording should be watched before any discussions begin with the supervisory team.

Moreira Pescarini-Sanchez Clemente-Pearce recording

MRC LID LINKS

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