“Imagine a world where the air we breathe is clean and the water we drink is clear, where a rich variety of plants and animals co-exist and thrive alongside humans, where human physical and mental health benefits from regular access to local green spaces, where travel to friends, family, workplaces and for leisure is inexpensive, easy and does not cause harm, where physical activity, social interaction and promotion of a healthy, nutritious diet are the default, and where this is all equitable, taking into the account those most vulnerable.” (Ellis and Sawyer, Ch.1, p.1)

Healthcare professionals, and the patients we care for, deserve to live in a future such as the one described in the first chapter of this book. Published in 2024 at a time when the impacts of climate change are becoming increasingly visible for all to see, “Environmentally Sustainable Primary Care”, edited by Dr Matt Sawyer and Dr Mike Tomson, two experienced GP’s with a plethora of work in this space, outlines practical steps those working in primary care can take to help reach this future “utopia”. Written by over 30 leading experts in sustainability, it provides an evidence-based background on the effects of climate change on health, human impact on planetary health, what is already being done and what we can do to mitigate these impacts and lead for a better future.

Each chapter is presented in an easily digestible format with practical case study examples, recommended actions, pledges for the reader to take with further references and resources to review. The ‘Where next?’ section at the end of the chapters signposts the reader to related topics to explore their interest further.

As a dentist with a special interest in sustainability, I naturally thought I’d start reading from the dentistry section. However, I was gripped from the introduction and ended up reading, bookmarking for later and re-reading the full range of topics. I recommend starting with the introduction, read your chosen area of interest and see where you end up. You may find yourself discovering things you hadn’t expected to, such as the relationship between marine life and medicine, and the importance of advocating for the health of our oceans to improve human health.

The way the book encourages you to read it exemplifies the importance of the multi-disciplinary team approach required to create a sustainable healthcare service. As health professionals and healthcare leaders, we all need to appreciate what is already being done, model it within our workplaces and share the results to achieve change on the scale that is needed to ensure we are living into our values as professionals that truly care for health. The sharing of resources in this book and exploration of what is going well helps us minimise the duplication of work and need to “reinvent the wheel”.

This book isn’t a “once and done” sort of book to forget about once you’ve read it. It is a guide to igniting or re-igniting your passion for environmental sustainability in healthcare. It dreams big, whilst also keeping things in perspective, as all good leadership does. It demonstrates how small actions can lead to big changes and, in turn, how these behavioural shifts can achieve systemic changes.

A profound element of the book is how it addresses eco-distress, with an engaging chapter written by Dr Becki Taylor-Smith (an anaesthetist and coach who specialises in supporting health professionals working in the climate space) dedicated to managing this commonly experienced – and often ignored – phenomenon. Those of us working and leading in this space need to be mindful of how we care for ourselves as we navigate this territory and it is inspiring to see the importance of this recognised in this book.

Although the target audience is those working in the four pillars of primary care – dentistry, General Practice, optometry and pharmacy – the principles and case studies are transferable across healthcare settings. Perhaps a future opportunity exists for another book in the series focusing specifically on environmentally sustainable secondary care or hospitals, to bring the focus of sustainable healthcare into the core of all of our work, wherever we exist within the system.

Of note, the book is currently available in hardback, paperback and e-book formats. The authors could consider making an audiobook version available, which may entice even the busiest of clinicians to listen on the go, whilst improving accessibility.

To summarise, it can be easy for us to be hindered by the doom and gloom of climate change statistics and slip into the mentality that the climate crisis and decarbonisation of healthcare is above our scope of practice, or not even worth engaging with. However, this book, “Environmentally Sustainable Primary Care”, shows us that the opposite is true. For those unclear of where to start with the seemingly enormous task ahead or those who wish to broaden their sustainability project repertoire, this book will equip you with tangible things you can do in your daily practice to make your difference. Grab a copy and see for yourself which part you could play in the sustainable healthcare movement.

Book details
Book title: Environmentally Sustainable Primary Care: Good for the planet, good for practices, good for patients.
Editors: Dr Matt Sawyer and Dr Mike Tomson
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 9781032793573
Format: Paperback, 322 pages.

Book reviewer

Dr Jenny Girdler
Dr Girdler is a senior registrar in Oral Surgery at the University Dental Hospital of Manchester with a keen interest in healthcare sustainability. She worked as a Leadership Fellow in Sustainable Dentistry with NHS England and the Centre for Sustainable Healthcare in 2022/2023.

Declaration of interests
I have read and understood the BMJ Group policy on declaration of interests and declare the following interests: None.