Healthcare professionals are at the forefront of climate change, witnessing firsthand the health impacts of climate change while working within a sector that contributes significantly to global emissions. To support the essential transition toward climate-smart healthcare, Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) Europe has developed the Pocket Guide for Healthcare Professionals: How to Kick-Start Your Decarbonisation Journey. This essential resource provides practical tools, strategies, and knowledge to help healthcare professionals launch their decarbonisation journey, such as understanding carbon footprints and tips on advocating for broader climate action in healthcare.
Why decarbonisation matters in healthcare
The healthcare sector is responsible for approximately 4.6% of global net emissions, which could triple by 2050 if no action is taken. Further, the changing climate threatens to undermine the past 50 years of gains in public health, disrupting the well-being of communities and the foundations on which health systems are built.
Yet, healthcare institutions have a unique opportunity to lead climate action through their influence, advocacy, and purchasing power. By adopting and advocating for sustainable practices, healthcare professionals can both reduce their facility's climate impact, and help healthcare serve as a role model for other sectors.
What the Pocket Guide offers
The Pocket Guide is designed to be a concise, user-friendly introduction to decarbonisation in healthcare. It covers three key areas:
- The Climate-Health Connection – Understanding how climate change impacts health and why the healthcare sector must take action.
- Communicating to Catalyse Climate Action – Effective communication strategies to mobilise collective action within healthcare facilities and beyond.
- Understanding Carbon Footprints – Key concepts and steps for calculating and reducing a facility’s carbon footprint.
Each section provides actionable insights and quick reference points to help healthcare professionals implement and advocate for sustainable practices in their facilities.
"This Pocket Guide is perfect for healthcare professionals who are new to climate action and aren’t sure where to begin, as well as for those already experienced in decarbonisation, looking for an easy-to-use resource to refine carbon footprint calculations and communicate effectively about climate and health."— Lara Grosso Sategna, Network Development Officer for Healthcare Professional Networks
How you can take action
The guide outlines clear steps to engage leadership, connect with peers, and start small but meaningful initiatives to drive change. Some practical actions include:
- Scheduling meetings with facility management to advocate for climate action.
- Learning more through resources like HCWH’s Climate Impact Checkup Course.
- Practicing carbon footprint calculations and identifying key emissions sources.
- Engaging in healthcare professional networks for collaboration and shared learning.
Join our networks for access
To access the full Pocket Guide for Healthcare Professionals, join our Healthcare Professional Networks today. The networks also allow you to connect with a community of like-minded healthcare professionals, as well as gain access to other exclusive resources and training opportuinities.
Membership is completely free and open to individual practitioners and students of theses disciplines in Europe who are committed to addressing the healthcare sector’s negative environmental and health impacts and working collaboratively. Choose the one that’s right for you: Nurses Climate Challenge Europe, Pharmacists for Greener Healthcare, or Doctors for Greener Healthcare.
This resource is also available to members of our Global Green and Healthy Hospitals (GGHH), on the network platform, GGHH Connect. GGHH is the largest sustainable healthcare network in the world, focused on the interests and needs of healthcare sustainability practitioners.
Share the Pocket Guide with your colleagues and management, and let us know what you think. Together, we can drive meaningful change toward a more sustainable and climate-resilient healthcare sector.
For more information, email europe@hcwh.org and take the first step in your decarbonisation journey today.
Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union of CINEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.