How to Drive Sustainable Healthcare: Educate, Engage, and Empower
Understand how healthcare impacts the environment and gain the skills to drive sustainable change within your healthcare setting.
594 enrolled on this course
Duration
3 weeksWeekly study
3 hours100% online
How it works
How to Drive Sustainable Healthcare: Educate, Engage, and Empower
Discover the importance of sustainability in healthcare
Though healthcare systems play a vital role in society, they also have a considerable environmental impact. As we face the climate crisis, we must identify ways to reduce this impact.
On this three-week course, you’ll discover how healthcare systems negatively affect the environment and what you can do in your healthcare setting to mitigate this.
With this understanding, you’ll gain skills to promote sustainability and improve the health of your patients and the planet.
Unpack the environmental impacts of healthcare systems
Healthcare consumes a considerable amount of energy, material, and water, and is one of the largest producers of waste and pollutants.
On the course, you’ll understand the impacts of health practices on ecosystems and how we can work as part of an interdisciplinary team to reduce these negative effects.
Explore the NHS carbon footprint
Next, discover how the NHS in England accounts for 25% of public sector CO2 emissions and delve further into the causes of this, such as procurement, utilisation, and waste.
You’ll then gain practical knowledge to help you take steps in identifying sustainability opportunities, networking and communication, and QI methodology.
Learn from the experts at University College London
Finally, you’ll explore current innovative models and case studies, both nationally and internationally, to gain a global perspective on sustainable healthcare.
Guided by the experts at University College London, you’ll finish the course with the skills and knowledge to deliver sustainable solutions in your healthcare setting.
Syllabus
Week 1
Educate
Introduction
Welcome to our course! In this introduction you will look at the overall course structure, with a focus on what you will be doing during this first week.
Climate Change: An existential crisis
Climate change is an existential threat. We are already experiencing the affects of anthropogenic climate change. Climate change is already destroying people's health, lives, homes and livelihoods on an unprecedented rate.
The problem: How the climate crisis affects our health
Climate change and global warming are causing huge impact on the world we live on. Within the last few decades extreme weather events have become more frequent and severe and their effects have been devastating.
The cause: Our contribution to the climate crisis
The biggest culprit for climate change and global warming is the burning of fossil fuels. In this course however, we will focus on the causes in healthcare.
Case scenarios
Although these are hypothetical situations they are based on real stories.
Summary of week one
We have now reached the end of week one., it's time for a reflect on what we have learnt so far.
Week 2
Engage
Welcome to week two
Week 2: Engage! This week you will investigate environmental ventures from around the world, exploring both successes and failures as you begin to think about how you will engage with your own projects.
Mitigating the effects of healthcare. What are we doing?
Now we will look at how nations, health care systems and big industry are tackling environmental issues. You can use these examples to inspire you own endeavours.
Procurement and waste
The procurement and waste sectors contribute greatly to healthcare pollution. By focussing on problems in this area you will begin to engage with grassroots issues.
The patient's carbon footprint journey
Any planned change projects need to consider the opinions of the end user. Here we look more closely at how environmental projects in healthcare can impact on patients and what their opinions are.
Myth and legends
We have looked at successes, but what about failures? Here we look at what happens when projects go wrong. We also explore widely held beliefs about environmental change which are erroneous.
Summary and close
Welcome to the end of week 2. Lets look back on what you have learnt this week.
Week 3
Empower
Introduction to Week 3
Welcome week 3, empower! In this final week you will be introduced to strategies and mechanisms to help you set up your own environmental change projects.
A powerful voice
How do patients feel about sustainable healthcare? Listen to interviews from healthcare users from different countries to assess how their attitudes to a more sustainable future.
How to make a difference!
Think big, Start small, Act now. Collaboration, networks and alliances and alliances are key. In this section we will hear from healthcare professionals from the UK and Europe and what they have achieved.
How to undertake a successful project and make a difference!
What steps do you need to take to kick start your own project in healthcare sustainability? Follow the guidelines here to start building a greener healthcare system in your environment.
The future
What does the future hold? As well as considering a curriculum for the future we want to hear what you are going to do. Join us in setting up a support network for healthcare sustainability where we can all support one another.
Summary
Summary
When would you like to start?
Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.
Available now
Learning on this course
If you'd like to take part while our educators are leading the course, they'll be joining the discussions, in the comments, between these dates:
- 3 May 2024 - 24 May 2024
On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...
- Discuss the vital importance of planetary healthcare and sustainable healthcare
- Describe the urgency of the Climate Crisis
- Engage with frameworks for creating behaviour change projects
- Apply knowledge and skills acquired to undertake your own impactful sustainability projects
Who is the course for?
This course is designed for healthcare professionals at both undergraduate and postgraduate level.
This includes community and hospital doctors, nurses, allied health professionals, healthcare workers, and more.
Who will you learn with?
Dr Manu-Priya Sharma is a consultant anaesthetist at University College Hospital London (UCLH). She has led, created, developed and delivered this course.
Dr Evelina Russell is an anaesthetic trainee in London. She has a keen interest in environmental sustainability, both in and outside of work, and has helped to develop and deliver the course.
Who developed the course?
UCL (University College London)
UCL was founded in 1826. It was the first English university established after Oxford and Cambridge, and the first to open up university education to those previously excluded from it.
Ways to learn | Buy this course | Subscribe & save | Limited access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Choose the best way to learn for you! | $109/one-off payment | $349.99 for one year Automatically renews | Free |
| Fulfill your current learning need | Develop skills to further your career | Sample the course materials | |
| Access to this course | tick | tick | Access expires 18 May 2024 |
| Access to 1,000+ courses | cross | tick | cross |
| Learn at your own pace | tick | tick | cross |
| Discuss your learning in comments | tick | tick | tick |
| Certificate when you're eligible | Printed and digital | Digital only | cross |
Cancel for free anytime |
Ways to learn
Choose the best way to learn for you!
Subscribe & save
$349.99 for one year
Automatically renews
Develop skills to further your career
- Access to this course
- Access to 1,000+ courses
- Learn at your own pace
- Discuss your learning in comments
- Digital certificate when you're eligible
Cancel for free anytime
Buy this course
$109/one-off payment
Fulfill your current learning need
- Access to this course
- Learn at your own pace
- Discuss your learning in comments
- Printed and digital certificate when you’re eligible
Limited access
Free
Sample the course materials
- Access expires 18 May 2024
Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades) | |||
Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)
Learning on FutureLearn
Your learning, your rules
- Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
- Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
- Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores
Join a global classroom
- Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
- Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
- Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others
Map your progress
- As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
- Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
- Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate
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