Climate change [Neurosurgery Wiki]

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====== Climate change ======

Climate change is a significant challenge that the medical [[community]] must address. Hospitals are large facilities with high water and energy [[consumption]], as well as high levels of [[waste]] generation, which makes it important to pursue [[green hospital]] initiatives. Neurosurgery requires substantial energy for surgeries and tests.

Based on the keywords "Climate change," "green hospital," "neurosurgery," "energy consumption," and "environmental impact" listed in this paper, we extracted representative manuscripts, and the practices employed in the authors' hospital were assessed.

The "Guidelines for Environmental Consideration in Hospitals" and "Guidelines for the Sustainability of Hospital Environments" have been developed; however, they are not implemented in most hospitals in Japan. Inhalational anesthetics were found to contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. Educating patients and staff and employing the "8 Rs" (rethink, refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle, research, renovation, and revolution) showed promise in achieving green hospital standards.

The advent of 'green hospitals' in Japan is imminent. The active participation of neurosurgeons can play a crucial role in diminishing the environmental footprint of health care while simultaneously enhancing medical standards. Given the pressing challenges posed by climate change, there is a critical need for an overhaul of medical practices. Neurosurgeons must pioneer the adoption of new, sustainable medical methodologies
((Asamoto S, Sawada H, Muto J, Arai T, Kawamata T. Green Hospital as a new Standard in Japan: How far can Neurosurgery go in Japan? World Neurosurg. 2024 Jul;187:150-155. doi: 10.1016/j.wneu.2024.04.086. Epub 2024 Apr 20. PMID: 38649025.)).