Calling all surgeons! Are you hungry for a challenge?
We need innovative thinkers to find solutions that transform surgical practice to become less harmful to the environment and build social sustainability…and who take action to make their ideas reality!
The Green Surgery Challenge 2021 is an opportunity for the UK’s surgical community to recognise the value of sustainable healthcare for surgical conditions: to share and promote ways of practising that are less harmful to the environment and our planet and build social sustainability: to continue to transform surgery for the future.
What is the problem in surgery?
Climate change is having far reaching consequences for planetary health, including within the UK, and is accepted as one of the greatest threats to the health of global populations. In addition, the integrity of our environment is threatened by air pollution, plastic overuse, chemical pollution, water scarcity, soil degradation, deforestation and loss of biodiversity.
Whilst healthcare organisations work to improve the health of populations, their day to day activities are contributing to climate change and to the impoverishment of the environment. The NHS is responsible for over one third of total public sector carbon emissions. Operating theatres contribute towards this, with energy requirements four to six times that of other hospital areas and as significant users of medical equipment and supplies.
It’s time for powerful solutions for a sustainable surgical future
The Greener NHS campaign and NHS Net Zero Report highlight the need and opportunity for healthcare to change its activities, processes and systems to address carbon-heavy interventions. The report draws upon The Centre for Sustainable Healthcare’s decade of experience in transforming healthcare for a sustainable future. Specifically, within surgical services there are opportunities for:
- Preventing and optimising conditions requiring surgical intervention, including peri-operative optimisation.
- Promoting patient empowerment and patient-centred surgical services.
- Ensuring lean surgical pathways, including identifying and avoiding unnecessary procedures or unused single-use items in surgery.
- Promoting low-carbon alternative products and processes in surgery, including reusable instruments, maintenance, repair, and recycling.
- Raising awareness and changing culture amongst the surgical community.
- Partnering with other allied healthcare professionals and supporting services to achieve these aims.
The Green Surgery 2021 Challenge Opportunity
The challenge will launch on 3rd February 2021 at an online event(link is external), hosted by the Royal College of Surgeons and Dr Olivia Bush, Clinical Programme Director at the Centre for Sustainable Healthcare. The will include an introduction to to green surgery from Sustainable Surgery Fellow Chantelle Rizan who is a co-founder of Sustainability in Surgery working group at the Royal College of Surgeons, England and Professor Mood Bhutta followed by information on how to get involved in the challenge and a Q&A.
After the launch event, teams can apply to enter the Green Surgery Challenge (from 3rd February 2021, watch this space for more details) by submitting an idea for what area of the surgical pathway you and a team that you’ve gathered would like to make it “greener” and more sustainable…and why.
6 teams will be selected to receive mentoring from sustainable healthcare specialists (who are both clinicians and sustainability consultants) at the Centre for Sustainable Healthcare to hone a specific question, devise a project, implement the project and measure the outcomes over a 10-week period. The teams will be introduced to sustainable quality improvement (SusQI) methodology; a methodology devised to create sustainable transformation.
All 6 teams will present their work at a high profile judging and award event held in partnership with the Royal College of Surgeons, England; this will be an opportunity to showcase the projects and the achievements of the teams and to catalyse culture change within the surgical community.