By Cristina Richie. High carbon health care has global environmental effects—population health is damaged by the carbon of health care industries. Many countries have medically underserved residents, and as such, it could be argued that there is an obligation on the part of health care systems to reduce carbon emissions through laws or policy. For […]
Category: Environmental ethics
How to reduce the carbon footprint of anaesthesia
By Joshua Parker, Nathan Hodson, Paul Young & Cliff Shelton. If asked what an anaesthetist does, most would picture a doctor placing a mask on a patient’s face and asking them to count backwards from ten to one. As they count, they inhale a colourless gas and before passing the halfway mark their countdown stops […]
“Good Medical Practice” and the Climate Crisis
By Rammina Yassaie. Primum non nocere. First do no harm. Words that are ingrained into every doctor from the moment they graduate medical school, as the resounding ethical principle to live and practice by. Medicine is often thought of as a career that involves ‘saving lives’, but how commonly are doctors encouraged to consider the […]
A new research ethics framework to consider environmental impacts requires a re-imagining of how health research is conceptualised
By Gabrielle Samuel and Cristina Richie. Developed countries’ health care systems comprise a significant proportion of their national carbon emissions (e.g., 6% in Great Britain) that, in turn, contribute to global emissions. These carbon emissions are compounded by other health issues such as climate change health hazards; social issues like war and environmental migration; and […]
The carbon emissions of prescribing practices
By Cristina Richie. Health care has a carbon footprint, which contributes to climate change and climate change health hazards, like severe weather, flooding, tornadoes, drought, and anxiety. Carbon emissions come from health care structures and health care activities. Health care structures like hospitals and clinics rely on high-carbon use building materials, heat and cooling, water […]