Philadelphia nurse checks in during heat wave

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- "Are you drinking plenty of fluids?"

As Jonas Lapinski of the Visiting Nurse Association of Greater Philadelphia completed his medical checks Wednesday afternoon he repeatedly asked that question.

"With this hot weather, dehydration starts affecting their mental capacity and then they become more forgetful drinking their fluids," Lapinksi told Action News.

Sometimes a medical condition can complicate matters, as one of his patients had a fluid restriction.

"So there's a fine line between drinking too much water and not drinking enough," he told his patient.

At both stops Action News was present for, there was air conditioning, though one unit was struggling under seven days of heat.

"It is struggling a little bit right now. But I'm sure everybody's is during this heat, but at the same token, you got to roll with the punches," Thomas Ham of North Philadelphia said.

Lapinski says he still sees homes with just fans, but often there is A/C. However, it's not always on.

"Other people, they try to keep the air conditioning off as much as possible because it's just going to be another bill," Lapinski said.

Make sure to stay hydrated, stay cool, and stay alert about your loved ones in this heat.