By Madhumita Kolluri1 and Niamh McCormack1
1 Medicine, Plymouth University
Email: madhumita.kolluri@students.plymouth.ac.uk
If there is anything we have learned from this year’s unprecedented fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, it is that the problems many of us have long been dismissing might finally be catching up to us. This is why we were inspired to bring the Planetary Health Report Card (PHRC) initiative to the Peninsula Medical School.
The PHRC is an international effort that urges students and staff to elevate their medical institutions’ engagement with planetary health and sustainable healthcare. Climate change can cause a wide spectrum of health problems for patients, from heat-related injury and respiratory illnesses/ allergies to vector-borne diseases and food insecurity. Climate change also disproportionately affects minority groups and indigenous peoples, further exacerbating structural health inequities. Thus, planetary health is human health.
At Plymouth, our fantastic team of 6 students and staff assessed our school’s BMBS programme performance in five key planetary health metrics: 1) the curriculum, 2) interdisciplinary health and environment research, 3) university support for student initiatives, 4) community outreach and impact, and 5) sustainability. We are pleased to share that Peninsula performed remarkably well on the report card. However, there are still some gaps in our medical school’s planetary health engagement and education for sustainable healthcare that we are now currently working on with faculty to change. Our findings (Table 1) for the 2020-2021 PHRC project at Peninsula Medical School can also be viewed online at https://phreportcard.org alongside the rest of the UK, US, Canadian and Irish PHRC institutions. The final grade achieved by the Peninsula Medical School at Plymouth University was B−.
Table 1. Summary of findings.
| Curriculum | B |
| The Peninsula Medical School BMBS curriculum offers opportunities for student engagement with planetary health (PH) and education for sustainable healthcare (ESH) via interactive workshops, small group discussions, lectures, and the elective curriculum consisting of special study units (where students individually pursue a research focus) and the 5th year clinical elective). The Centre for Sustainable Futures runs training workshops for staff interested in PH and sustainability as an incentive programme.However, considering the higher emphasis on ESH and PH during pre-clinical years, better longitudinal integration is necessary. Also, more learning outcomes clearly detailing ESH and PH topics would better standardise instruction. | |
| Interdisciplinary Research | B |
| The Sustainable Earth Institute’s research festival and conferences promote PH/sustainability. The Global Health Collaborative (GHC) and many medical faculty members are also working on PH projects (ex: the KUPUMUA project https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/research/support/funding/global-challenges-research-fund/kupumua).Opportunities to engage with interdisciplinary research need to be better publicised and easier to access. We recommend the medical school compile a list of ESH and PH research opportunities onto a document that is accessible from the digital learning environment. | |
| Community Outreach and Advocacy | C |
| The Social Engagement pathway, the BMBS Student Newsletter, and Plymouth Student Bulletins are examples of community outreach and advocacy. The GHC also offers a continuing professional development course for clinicians (REM716). | |
| Support for Student-Led Initiatives | C+ |
| The University employs an Environment and Sustainability Officer through the Students’ Union. Student representatives are also a part of the GHC. Staff support for student initiatives is also prevalent throughout campus. Students for Global Health and the Plymouth University Wilderness and Expedition Medicine Society are two student PH initiatives currently active on campus. We urge medical faculty to provide more funding for similar such student-led initiatives. | |
| Sustainability | B− |
| The University of Plymouth most recently scored 79% in food sustainability due to strategies like recycling systems and sending food waste to local anaerobic digestion.However, <20% of energy needs are being met by renewable energy generation. We support purchasing the Renewable Energy Guarantees Origin by 2025 and recommend the medical school publishes their own carbon/sustainability goals. Considering the University’s decentralised policies, we also urge medical faculty to apply standardised sustainability criteria to future supply procurement. |
PHRC serves as a reminder of the power of unity and provides a unique opportunity for medical schools across the globe to come together in a way that they have never done so before. We hope that fellow UK medical schools continue to be a part of this initiative and would be keen to hear how they have found the experience to be so far.
Overall, we are incredibly excited and proud to have been a part of this project, and we look forward to recruiting more team members next year!
Contribution statement Madhumita Kolluri is the guarantor of this article.
Acknowledgements We would like to thank our team members Nirmal Jayakrishnan, Saskia Kinghorn, Mhairi Reed-Embleton, Muskaan Sharma, Professor Hilary Neve, and Dr Theresa Martin for their valuable support and commitment during this project.