Policies for healthy ageing in response to climate change: Protocol of a systematic review

PLOS One | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0323069 April 30, 2025 1 / 8 This is a Registered Report and may have an associated publication; please check the article page on the journal site for any related articles. OPEN ACCESS Citation: Asiamah N, Ofosu BO, Effah-Baafi YJ, Awuviry-Newton K, Nkansah J, Saunders B (2025) Policies for healthy ageing in response to climate change: Protocol of a systematic review. PLoS One 20(4): e0323069. https://doi. org/10.1371/journal.pone.0323069 Editor: LS Katrina Li, La Trobe University - Bundoora Campus: La Trobe University, AUSTRALIA Received: February 12, 2025 Accepted: April 1, 2025 Published: April 30, 2025 Peer Review History: PLOS recognizes the benefits of transparency in the peer review process; therefore, we enable the publication of all of the content of peer review and author responses alongside final, published articles. The editorial history of this article is available here: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0323069 REGISTERED REPORT PROTOCOL Policies for healthy ageing in response to climate change: Protocol of a systematic review Nestor Asiamah 1,2,3,4*, Bernard Opoku Ofosu5, Yaw Jnr Effah-Baafi 6, Kofi Awuviry-Newton7, Jacob Nkansah8, Bernadette Saunders9 1 Division of Interdisciplinary Research and Practice, School of Health and Social Care, Colchester, Essex, United Kingdom, 2 International Public Health Management Programme, University of Europe for Applied Sciences, Iserlohn, Germany, 3 Research Faculty, Berlin School of Business and Innovation,

Berlin, Germany, 4 Africa Center for Epidemiology, Department of Geriatrics and Gerontology, Accra, Ghana, 5 School of Public Health, University of Ghana, Legon-Accra, Ghana, 6 Kumasi, Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana, 7 Department of Allied Health, College of Sport, Health and Engineering, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 8 Department of Education Policy and Leadership, The Education University of Hong Kong, Ting Kok, Hong Kong, 9 Department of Allied Health, College of Sport, Health and Engineering, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia * n.asiamah@essex.ac.uk Abstract Climate change is a global phenomenon affecting every segment of the population. Yet, older adults are more vulnerable to climate change events (e.g., floods, heat- waves, landslides) owing to their functional limitations. Understandably, stakeholders have called for healthy ageing policies that enable older adults and individuals in the general population to maintain wellbeing despite climate change. This review aims to describe healthy ageing policies adopted or recommended in response to climate change. Eight databases (i.e., CINAHL, Cochrane library, ProQuest, PsycINFO, Goo- gle Scholar, Web of Science, Scopus, and MEDLINE) will be searched to identify rel- evant studies. Materials published anywhere in English to date will be included in the review. The Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) or Joanna Briggs Institute

(JBI) checklist will be employed to assess the quality of studies. A narrative synthesis will be adopted to present the results. This review will highlight groups targeted with healthy ageing policies and describe policies in use or recommended. It will proffer implications for practice, research, and sustainability. Introduction Climate change accompanies extreme weather conditions, (e.g., flooding, hurri- canes, and heat waves) that adversely impact communities. It threatens biodiversity, increases the risk of mortality, and makes communities more vulnerable to respiratory diseases [1,2]. Although it affects countries and regions in different ways, researchers