Climate change is the biggest global health threat of the 21st century.

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Simultaneously the healthcare sector, responsible for 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, contributes significantly to this issue. The US healthcare sector is responsible for a quarter of all healthcare emissions globally - if it were a country it would be the 13th biggest emitter in the world.

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Surgery has a particularly high carbon footprint - the operating room is 6 times as energy-intensive as other hospital areas and contributes up to 70% of overall hospital waste.

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As surgical care providers, we have a duty to the health of our patients, communities, and the planet to help reduce the environmental impact of our care.

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The ‘climate change and surgery hot topics‘ project has collated the available evidence from peer-reviewed literature to create easy-to-follow, digestible practical guides for Surgery, Anesthesia, and Obstetric care providers who wish to address the issue of climate change in their place of work.

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Each of the topics below provides a step-by-step guide to implementing change in a specific area, as well as potential barriers, facilitators, benefits, and cost savings.

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The topics are designed to be interactive with hyperlinks embedded within the text and useful resources provided via QR codes at the bottom of each page.

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