Climate Change and Environmental Sustainability in Acute and Critical Care

In 2006, former Vice President Al Gore offered a clarion call for climate action in the book and documentary An Inconvenient Truth.¹  Almost 20 years later, faced with rising global temperatures and concern from climate scientists, some Americans still do not feel the urgency to act. They think the news about rising global temperatures has been overstated, and they may not see media and governmental reports as credible.²  There have also been specific calls to health care organizations and providers by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, the Paris Agreement, The Joint Commission, and others to take action toward environmental sustainability. Fortunately, the majority of people working in health care do believe the science surrounding climate change and understand the potential negative effects on public health. However, some feel they have insufficient knowledge and lack of support regarding promoting environmentally sustainable changes, as the topic may be viewed as controversial and too risky professionally.³  In addition, nurses may not have the knowledge required to identify potential environmental health impacts in the assessment and management of patients. Those who are already overwhelmed due to time constraints, inadequate staffing, and unhealthy work environments may not have the energy to focus on environmental issues.

This symposium highlights the steps individuals and organizations can take to combat climate change and how to begin the journey toward environmental sustainability. It also addresses the potential outcomes of a changing climate that may be seen and experienced by health care providers, patients and their families, and those in communities. In this issue, Shelby describes her journey to becoming more knowledgeable about how she as a nurse could advocate for creating sustainable changes in the health care setting. She provides key information and resources for nurses on developing a green practice and leading changes within their health care settings. In a complementary perspective, Pate provides a call to action for hospitals to engage in making changes to lessen the impact on climate change. Together, these 2 articles provide ideas and encouragement for nurses to address ways that health care organizations and providers can increase their actions and contributions to combat climate change.

Additional articles provide clinical information related to the impact of climate change on patient populations for whom nurses care. Munro describes how the effects of climate change—including factors such as rising temperatures and flourishing microbial growth—contribute to the increase of emerging infectious diseases. Quarry and Slota describe the impact of no-notice natural disasters on nursing resources and emergency preparedness using the 2023 Maui wildfires as a case study. Finally, Atkin and Simmonds highlight the disproportionate burden that women bear in experiencing the negative health impacts of climate change, particularly the implications of climate change for pregnancy.

Moving forward, environmental sustainability must be integrated into the education of health care providers and the orientation to hospitals, as well as into professional organizations. The concept of a healthy workplace needs to expand to encompass the toxic substances providers, employees, and patients and families are in contact with and environmental issues occurring outside of hospital walls. These issues can take a toll on employees’ physical and mental well-being, which employers must be poised to address. Health care organizations must also prepare to manage the growing threat to public health and mental health that climate change poses, especially among vulnerable populations.⁴  Professional organizations can do their part through education, “greening” conferences, and virtual and face-to-face collaborative efforts to decrease the release of toxic emissions, water and energy usage, and waste. This symposium is dedicated to furthering understanding of the issues surrounding climate change, preparing professionals to manage the inevitable impacts on human health, and promoting environmentally sustainable solutions for health care practice, because we are in a defining moment for climate change.⁵