Surgical Education Within Planetary Health Curricula: A Global Environmental Scan (2022–2025)

Operating rooms (ORs) represent strategic targets for climate mitigation efforts, given their significant environmental footprint and the need for increased surgical capacity to meet the global surgical burden of disease. OR teams are often unaware of impacts of unsustainable surgical practices. Although research supports the integration of planetary health into clinical education, there is limited data on the availability, structure, and surgical content of such courses. This study examines the availability and accessibility of planetary health courses (PHCs) worldwide, with a focus on identifying surgical content within curricula. An environmental scan was conducted using internet searches, reviewing curricula from the top ten universities in each global region and cross-referencing existing course collections. Courses were evaluated based on type, cost, language, and whether they addressed the environmental impact of surgery. A total of 248 courses were identified, primarily at the graduate level, offered in English, and concentrated in North America and Europe. Only four courses included content on the intersection of planetary health and surgery. These findings demonstrate the lack of surgical content in planetary health education and emphasize the need to develop comprehensive, accessible, and globally representative courses that address the environmental impacts of surgical care.

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