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In September 2021, we formally recognised the scale and importance of the situation by publishing a climate declaration. 1 Tracy Lyons, medicines optimisation pharmacist and pharmacy sustainability lead at Poole Hospital, is the founder of Pharmacy Declares, a group of climate-conscious pharmacy professionals. She explains that recycling facilities differ ‘hugely’ across the country making it hard for companies to launch national schemes. Pharmacists are trusted health professionals. As a profession we need to inform and educate patients and the public about the link between climate crisis and health, which we hope will motivate others to act, resulting in healthier living and reduced environmental impact. Mr Rehan told The Pharmacist he had bought an electric van which he uses to deliver all his medicines, which he says has reduced their fuel costs by over two-thirds.
Even if you manage to run a recycling scheme that can cope with large volumes of waste you are still going to be producing large amounts of waste and as we know, materials like plastic can only be recycled a certain number of times.’ Ms Lyons says.
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In September 2021, we formally recognised the scale and importance of the situation by publishing a climate declaration. Climate change is the most significant health threat modern society has ever faced: it affects clean air, safe drinking water, food and shelter. Modelling shows us that the last 50 years of public health gains will be wiped out if we don’t do something now. Combine this with the increasing demand for health services and the fact that medicines are the most common intervention in healthcare, and the role for pharmacy is clear. Medicines account for about 25% of carbon emissions within the NHS.
Pharmacy has seen a range of initiatives centred around recycling. Recycling has well-documented benefits for the planet and has been shown to reduce carbon emissions. But can this alone achieve enough? Since NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE&I) published an ambitious new strategy in 2020 – in which it pledged to become the world’s first health service to agree on net-zero emissions – several green initiatives have been piloted in pharmacies . Coventry, England The GP Service (UK) Limited, Coventry University Technology Park, Puma Way, Coventry, CV1 2TT Recently, researchers found traces of commonly used drugs, such as antibiotics, in rivers globally. The pharmacists agreed that recycling and waste management are only small parts of being sustainable. However, both said it is still a great way for people to get involved in sustainability and to help pharmacies ‘get into a greener mindset’.
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Recycling is the thin end of the green wedge and is something everyone can get into, and everyone can understand. It’s popular, and demand for recycling is high,’ she says. There is now more support than ever before, not just in the form of information, but also products designed to reduce cravings and to fight off any of the horrible withdrawal symptoms. One of the developments has been the introduction of Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT.) There are a variety of NRT products available: This month, a study found that switching an asthma patient from a metered-dose inhaler to a dry powder inhaler significantly reduces their carbon footprint without loss of asthma control. We aim to provide you with the knowledge and support you need to make confident decisions about your When we talk about sustainability we tend to think first about recycling, but some pharmacists believe that pharmacies should be focusing more of their efforts on clinical services if they want to save the planet.
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