Sustainability Resources
These resources include information about environmentally sustainable health care practices, including appropriate medication use and management of pharmaceutical waste at the individual, organizational, and health system levels.
Decarbonization of Health Care
Global Road Map for Health Care Decarbonization
“A navigational tool for achieving zero emissions with climate resilience and health equity”, published by Health Care Without Harm
Health Care’s Climate Footprint
A report by Health Care Without Harm: “How the health sector contributes to the global climate crisis and opportunities for action”
Environmentally Sustainable Use of Pharmaceuticals
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Patient Decision Aid: Inhalers for Asthma
Case studies on reducing environmental impacts of pharmaceuticals
From hospitals in the Global Green and Healthy Hospitals network
Literature
Bettington E, Spinks J, Kelly F, Gallard-Godoy A, Nghiem S, Wheeler AJ. When is a medicine unwanted, how is it disposed, and how might safe disposal be promoted? Insights from the Australian population. Aust Health Rev. 2017;42(6): 709-717. https://doi.org/10.1071/AH16296
Bettington E, Spinks J, Kelly F, Wheeler AJ. Returning unwanted medicines to pharmacies: prescribing to reduce waste. Aust Prescr. 2018;41:78-81. https://doi.org/10.18773/austprescr.2018.015
Cook SM, vanDuinen BJ, Love NG, Skerlos SJ. Life Cycle Comparison of Environmental Emissions from Three Disposal Options for Unused Pharmaceuticals. Environ Sci Technol. 2012; 46(10): 5535-5541. https://doi.org/10.1021/es203987b
Daughton CG. Eco-directed sustainable prescribing: feasibility for reducing water contamination by drugs. Science of The Total Environment. 2014; 493(15): 392-404. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2014.06.013
Khan U, Bloom RA, Nicell JA, Laurenson JP. Risks associated with the environmental release of pharmaceuticals on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration "flush list". Sci Total Environ. 2017 Dec 31;609:1023-1040. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.05.269. Epub 2017 Aug 2. PMID: 28787777.
Lakatos K, Teherani A, Thottathil SE, Ghandi S, Weiser SD, Brindis CD. A race to net zero- early lessons from healthcare's decarbonization marathon. Health Affairs Scholar. 2023 July; 1(1): 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1093/haschl/qxad006
Law AV, Sakharkar P, Zargarzadeh A, et al. Taking stock of medication wastage: Unused medications in US households. Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy. 2015; 11(4): 571-578. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2014.10.003
McAlister S, Ou Y, Neff E, Hapgood K, Story D, Mealey P, McGain F. The Environmental footprint of morphine: a life cycle assessment from opium poppy farming to the packaged drug. BMJ Open. 2016;6: e013302. doi:10.1136/ bmjopen-2016-013302
Singleton JA, Lau ETL, Nissen LM. Waiter, there is a drug in my soup - using Leximancer® to explore antecedents to pro-environmental behaviours in the hospital pharmacy workplace. Int J Pharm Pract. 2018;26(4):341-50. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijpp.12395
Wilkinson AJK, Braggins R, Steinbach I, Smith J. Costs of switching to low global warming potential inhalers: an economic and carbon footprint analysis of NHS prescription data in England. BMJ Open. 2019;9(10): e28763 http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2018-028763
Connects vulnerable pts with unused medications in the United States
Matthew 25 Ministries Pill Bottle Donations
Collect and re-uses or recycles empty pill bottles in the United States
Return Unwanted Medicines (The RUM Project)
Australian program administered via community pharmacies
Resource kit published by the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration