Climate change is a health issue: what can doctors do?
The visit to Australia by Dr David Pencheon, Founding Director of the National Health Service (NHS) Sustainable Development Unit, in April-May 2018 generated considerable interest and engagement. Dr Pencheon's overarching messages were that climate change is a health issue and that doctors and health systems have an opportunity, and responsibility, to lead climate action. This article distils Dr Pencheon's presentations into three themes: (i) carbon accounting; (ii) transformational change in our systems of healthcare; and (iii) a health system fit for the future. For each theme, we highlight promising initiatives that are already underway in Australia that are starting to transform our health system into one fit for a future environmentally sustainable world. We suggest practical ways in which doctors can lead the transformation through personal action and influence broader systems.
['Sainsbury|Peter|P|0000-0002-0638-9438', 'Charlesworth|Kate|K|', 'Madden|Lynne|L|', 'Capon|Anthony|A|', 'Stewart|Greg|G|', 'Pencheon|David|D|']
D001315:Australia D002245:Carbon Dioxide D057231:Climate Change D004782:Environmental Health D006801:Humans D016134:Organizational Policy D011364:Professional Practice D011634:Public Health D006113:United Kingdom
climate change health service environmentally sustainable healthcare global warming health impacts of climate change