Planetary Health
Planetary Health and sustainability are an increasingly integral part of healthcare, research and education at UMC Utrecht. In 2023 we undertook a number of successful endeavors in the integration of Planetary Health and sustainability in education, for example:
Ensuring Planetary Health in our training programs
The Planetary Health Impulse Team (PHIT) worked for an entire year on the accelerated embedding of planetary health in training programs at UMC Utrecht. To back this impulse structurally, we set up a Core Team for Planetary Health. In the coming period, a policy officer from each program will be in charge of further integrating planetary health in the courses.
Innovations in Planetary Health education
We also undertook various successful innovations in education. From the EWUU Alliance in cooperation with the Global Health team we developed and offered the challenge-based learning course ‘Planetary Health & Climate-Resilient Health Systems’. We further integrated four hours of teaching from a planetary perspective in the course An Eye for Impact within the Biomedical Sciences program. And for the Medical program, in cooperation with colleagues from infection prevention, we developed classes on hand hygiene and sustainable use of gloves, which we integrated in the program.
NFU vision: Planetary Health in UMC programs
To conclude, in cooperation with all UMCs, UMC Utrecht drew up the national vision: ‘Planetary Health in educational programs at university medical centers. Striving together for a sustainable healthcare sector and a healthy society.’ We thereby attained one of the goals of the NFU Implementation Plan in the scope of the Green Deal on Sustainable Healthcare 3.0. UMC Utrecht is the leader of pillar 2: Knowledge & Awareness within NFU implementation plan. UMC Utrecht has also developed a countrywide e-module: ‘Planetary Health, what does it mean for me as a (future) healthcare professional?’
