Climate change is “rapidly shaping” the clinical environments in which nursing staff work, a group of early career and student nurses have said while calling for the issue to be brought to the top of the profession’s agenda.
The International Council of Nurses (ICN)’s Nursing Student Steering Group and Alliance of Student and Early Career Nurses made the remarks in a statement published at the end of May.
“We carry the responsibility to be part of the solution”
Steering group statement
This statement was written by steering group members Marlene Juhl, Dimas Dwi Nugraha, Soyeon Park, Carlos Irenko Toro Molina, Molieane Daniel Setholi and Alreem Bukhamseen.
In it, the student and early career nurses drew attention to the threat the climate crisis poses to health and healthcare.
“We are increasingly aware that the climate crisis and environmental degradation are not distant threats, they are rapidly shaping our clinical environments, influencing the communities we serve and affecting our mental health and wellbeing,” the statement said.
“As future professionals and emerging leaders, we carry the responsibility to be part of the solution.”
The group made three chief demands to world leaders.
The first was for the importance of student and early career nurses to be “recognised” in advancing “planetary health”.
Elaborating, the group wrote that it was “essential” to invest in leadership development for student and early career nurses and to create avenues by which they can participate in sustainability initiatives.
“Our proximity to the frontlines and our future in the profession position us to lead change with urgency, innovation and care,” they wrote.
The second demand was for planetary health to be a “core component” in nursing education.
Thirdly, they called for student nurse curricula to “reflect the realities of the climate crisis”, including education on reducing waste, saving energy and sustainable clinical practice.
As part of this call, they said that clinical placements should favour organisations and settings that commit to net-zero goals.
In the UK, both the English and Scottish NHS have a net-zero target of 2040; the Welsh NHS aims to be net-zero by 2030, and in Northern Ireland the entire country aims to reach this milestone by 2050.
The group added: “We offer our perspective as the future of nursing – with hope, integrity and a deep sense of responsibility.
“We are ready to learn, lead and act – grounded in the ethics of our profession and inspired by the vision of a healthy and sustainable world.
“Because there is no health without a healthy planet and there is no future of health without the education of nurses who are prepared to protect it. Nurse the planet. Heal the future.”
ICN president Pamela Cipriano added: “I am inspired by these young nurses who are recognising their responsibilities and stepping up to take action.
“Their proactive stance shows they are ready to lead the transformation our health systems need to survive and thrive.”
The early career groups’ calls align with a position statement published by the ICN at the end of last year, which dubbed climate change the “single greatest health threat facing humanity”.
In that statement, the ICN called on nurses to educate themselves, and the next generation of nurses, about the impact climate change could have on practice.
