Sustainable Surgery

Sustainable surgery refers to the practice of surgery in an environmentally friendly manner that limits the impact and contribution to climate change. Climate change is defined as changing weather patterns and increasing global temperatures caused by the release of greenhouse gases (GHGs) caused by fossil fuels. The World Health Organization has declared climate change as the most significant public health threat facing humanity. The healthcare sector is an important contributor to climate change, and surgery is the most energy-intensive and waste-producing field in healthcare. We will review processes in the operating room (OR) that impact climate change and actions which can be initiated to mitigate this impact. Through sustainability education, data collection, collaboration, action, and advocacy, operating rooms globally can change to help surgery become a more sustainable field.