SURGICAL COLLEGES LAUNCH GREEN THEATRE CHECKLIST

Leaders from three of the UK’s surgical Royal Colleges have come together to declare a climate emergency as they launch new guidance for those in the profession aimed at reducing the environmental impact of surgery.

In response to the ongoing environmental crisis, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and The Royal College of Surgeons of England, which collectively represent over 75,000 healthcare professionals, have co-authored the ‘Green Theatre Checklist’.

The checklist includes a range of suggested actions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres, and the experts who have devised this intercollegiate strategy are hopeful it can eventually be rolled out and introduced as a new standard for operating theatres around the world.

While surgery saves millions of lives and betters the lives of many more, there is an environmental cost, with a typical single operation estimated to generate between 150-170 kgCO2ethe equivalent of driving 450 miles in an average petrol car.

The greenhouse gases used in anaesthetic, the heavy plastic usage to uphold hygiene standards, and other industry specific reasons mean surgery contributes heavily towards global healthcare’s production of carbon emissions, estimated at around 4 to 5 per cent of total carbon emissions per year.

The Green Theatre Checklist can be found on our website at: rcp.sg/GreenTheatreInitiative