Integrating planetary health into healthcare: A document analysis.
Climate change
Healthcare
Planetary health
Policy analysis
Journal
Health policy (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
ISSN: 1872-6054
Titre abrégé: Health Policy
Pays: Ireland
ID NLM: 8409431
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
06 2021
06 2021
Historique:
received:
16
09
2020
revised:
01
04
2021
accepted:
02
04
2021
pubmed:
14
4
2021
medline:
5
8
2021
entrez:
13
4
2021
Statut:
ppublish
Résumé
Anthropogenic climate change poses a major health risk to humankind. The healthcare sector both contributes to climate change and is vulnerable to its impacts. Healthcare's greenhouse gas emissions are primarily derived from its supply chain: the production, transport, and disposal of goods. Document analysis was used to investigate the workplace policies of one large, Western Canadian healthcare organization. Policies that indicated how employees should engage with resources were reviewed through the lens of environmentally responsible practice and planetary health. Content and thematic analysis were applied. Four themes were identified: procurement of resources, resource utilization, resource conservation, and waste management. There was little evidence of environmental or climate impact consideration within the organization's policies. Healthcare organizations could benefit from integrating a planetary health perspective into their policies to deliver healthcare that considers the health and safety of both humans and the climate.
Sections du résumé
BACKGROUND
Anthropogenic climate change poses a major health risk to humankind. The healthcare sector both contributes to climate change and is vulnerable to its impacts. Healthcare's greenhouse gas emissions are primarily derived from its supply chain: the production, transport, and disposal of goods.
METHODS
Document analysis was used to investigate the workplace policies of one large, Western Canadian healthcare organization. Policies that indicated how employees should engage with resources were reviewed through the lens of environmentally responsible practice and planetary health. Content and thematic analysis were applied.
RESULTS
Four themes were identified: procurement of resources, resource utilization, resource conservation, and waste management.
CONCLUSION
There was little evidence of environmental or climate impact consideration within the organization's policies.
IMPLICATIONS
Healthcare organizations could benefit from integrating a planetary health perspective into their policies to deliver healthcare that considers the health and safety of both humans and the climate.
Identifiants
pubmed: 33846028
pii: S0168-8510(21)00089-0
doi: 10.1016/j.healthpol.2021.04.002
pii:
doi:
Types de publication
Journal Article
Review
Langues
eng
Pagination
799-806Informations de copyright
Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Déclaration de conflit d'intérêts
Declaration of Competing Interest The authors have no conflicts to report. This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.