Course Credit: 6 hours
The U.S. healthcare sector emits 8.5% of the country’s total emissions. Hospitals are a substantial part of this. Not only are we tasked with responding to the many health impacts of climate change, but we are also contributing to the problem. Each one of our hospitals and organizations has an immense opportunity and responsibility to reach carbon neutrality. Kaiser Permanente and Gundersen Health System have already acted. In this module, we will explore the environmental impact of healthcare and dive into what solutions are already being implemented.
Curriculum: Module 7 of 10
Optional Reading
| Reading Material |
|---|
| Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality: Reducing healthcare carbon emissions: A primer on measures and actions for healthcare organizations to mitigate climate change AMA Journal of Ethics: Health care waste Resources, Conservation, and Recycling: The green print: Advancement of environmental sustainability in healthcare U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): Greenhouse gas equivalencies calculator – Convert emissions or energy data into concrete terms you can understand — such as the annual CO2 emissions of cars, households, and power plants. |
Climate Change and EM Team
- Lead Author: Caitlin Rublee, MD, MPH
- Secondary Authors: Catharina Giudice, MD; Katelyn Moretti, MD, MS; Kyle Martin, DO, MA, MPH; Andrew Musits, MD, MS
- Contributors: Joseph Leanza, MD; Christine Baek; Nikhil Ranadive, MD, MS
- ALiEMU Graphic Designer: Christopher Nash, MD
- ALiEMU Peer Reviewer: Michelle Lin, MD
- Sponsor: Medical College of Wisconsin
- Curriculum design consultant: Simiao Li-Sauerwine, MD, MSCR with the ALiEM Education Research Lab and Incubator (ERLI)