Code red for aeromedical – critical care in the DIRTY Air

Mr Mark Holmes¹

¹Australian College of Nursing

Purpose:Climate change is a code red for humanity. Aeromedical services respond best to an emergency.  Aeromedical services paradoxically cause high emissions yet care for the most climate vulnerable people. This presentation will present Australian College of Nursing (ACN) emissions reduction policy and contextualize it to aeromedical environment to create awareness of the need for aeromedical sustainability.

Problem under consideration:Climate change is real. The earth has warmed 1.1 degrees Celsius since industrialisation. Climate change significantly impacts health. The predicted death rate globally from climate change is expected to be up to 250,000 deaths per annum between 2030 and 2050 (World Health Organisation 2017).  A stable climate is the most fundamental determinant of future human health and without decisive action to reduce emissions in the next five years, the health impacts of climate change will only get worse. Nurses, as the largest group of health professionals are primed to lead inter-professional aeromedical emissions reduction.

Nature and scope:

This presentation presents the following research completed by the author through the ACN emissions reduction policy chapter:

1. Guiding Principles – Nursing Leadership in Emissions Reduction
2. Ward et al (2022) ‘Reimagining the role of nursing education in emissions reduction’ published in Teaching and Learning in Nursing

Using these documents as a base, this presentation will ask the assembled aeromedical industry:

• What is the Australian Aeromedical carbon footprint?
• How can we work together to reduce aeromedical emissions?

Outcome:

This presentation is a wake-up call for a heavy carbon footprint industry such as aeromedical who paradoxically cares for those most at risk from climate change. A complex problem requires a complex solution and we must act now. This is the start of the conversation and the aeromedical nursing workforce must be at the forefront of leading emissions reduction in aeromedical.

Biography:

Mark is a registered nurse, registered midwife, educator, and human factors practitioner with a background in aeromedical retrieval. In 2021 he completed a policy fellowship with the Australian College of Nursing authoring policy and research on nurses’ role in emissions reduction. Following this, he is a founding member of Climate Action Nurses.