Healthcare sustainability in cardiothoracic surgery

Area of Science:

• Environmental Health and Medicine
• Cardiothoracic Surgery
• Sustainable Healthcare Practices

Background:

• Climate change poses a significant threat to human health, with cardiothoracic patients experiencing direct impacts from environmental degradation.
• Cardiothoracic surgeons, as leaders in complex procedures, are well-positioned to implement changes reducing emissions within and beyond the hospital setting.

Purpose of the Study:

• To highlight the critical issue of climate change's impact on cardiothoracic health.
• To assess current sustainability efforts within cardiothoracic surgery.
• To encourage specialists to actively lead and implement sustainable practices.

Main Methods:

• Formalizing sustainability within surgical training curricula.
• Utilizing carbon audits and life cycle analyses to raise awareness.
• Implementing practical strategies like reducing equipment waste and optimizing resource utilization.

Main Results:

• Reducing unnecessary equipment, favoring reusables over disposables, and judicious use of investigations decrease carbon footprint.
• Sharing resources across services and health systems contributes to lower carbon output.
• The 'Triple Bottom Line' framework can guide efforts balancing quality care with environmental impact.

Conclusions:

• Sustainability needs to be integrated into cardiothoracic surgical training and practice.
• Practical, evidence-based actions can significantly reduce the environmental impact of cardiothoracic surgery.
• Further advocacy and innovation are needed to advance sustainable healthcare solutions in the field.