RT Journal Article
T1 The carbon footprint of healthcare settings: A systematic review
A1 Rodríguez Jiménez, Lucas
A1 Romero Martín, Macarena
A1 Spruell, Timothy
A1 Steley, Zoe
A1 Gómez Salgado, Juan
AB Healthcare systems are responsible for 4%–5% of the emissions of greenhouse gasesworldwide. The Greenhouse Gas Protocol divides carbon emissions into three scopes: scope 1 or direct emissions secondary to energy use; scope 2 or indirect emissions secondary to purchased electricity; and scope 3 for the rest of indirect emissions. Aim: To describe the environmental impact of health services.Design: A systematic review was conducted in the Medline, Web of Science, CINAHL, and Cochrane databases. Studies that focused their analysis on a functional healthcare unit and which included. This review was conducted from August to October 2022.Results: The initial electronic search yielded a total of 4368 records. After the screening process according to the inclusion criteria, 13 studies were included in this review. The reviewed studies found that between 15% and 50% of the total emissions corresponded to scopes 1 and 2 emissions, whereas scope 3 emissions ranged between 50% and 75% of the total emissions. Disposables, equipment (medical and non-medical) and pharmaceuticals represented the higher percentage of emissions in scope 3.Conclusion: Most of the emissions corresponded to scope 3, which includes the indirect emission occurring as a consequence of the healthcare activity, as this scope includes a wider range of emission sources than the other scopes. Implications for the profession and/or patient care: Interventions should be carried out by the healthcare organizations responsible of Greenhouse Gas emissions, and also every single individual that integrates them should make changes. The use of evidence-based approaches to identify carbon hotspots and implement the most effective interventions in the healthcare setting could lead to a significant reduction of carbon emissions.Impact: This literature review highlights the impact that healthcare systems have on climate change and the importance of adopting and carrying out interventions to prevent its fast development. Reporting Method: This review adhered to PRISMA guideline. PRISMA 2020 is a guideline designed for systematic reviews of studies that analyse the effects of heath interventions, and aim is to help authors improve the reporting of systematic review and meta-analyses.Patient or Public Contribution: No Patient or Public Contribution.
PB Wiley
SN 0309-2402
SN 1365-2648 (electrónico)
YR 2023
FD 2023-05
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10272/22443
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10272/22443
LA eng
NO Rodríguez‐Jiménez, L., Romero‐Martín, M., Spruell, T., Steley, Z., & Gómez‐Salgado, J. (2023). The carbon footprint of healthcare settings: A systematic review. In Journal of Advanced Nursing (Vol. 79, Issue 8, pp. 2830–2844). Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.15671
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Huelva
RD 1 jun 2026