e-Den

A new elearning session on sustainable dentistry has been released today, on NHS Sustainability Day 2016, as part of the e-Den (Dentistry) programme. The resource provides an introduction to climate change and explores the main principles of sustainable practice and their application in dentistry. It encourages clinicians and managers to make sustainable choices and identifies practical tools and resources to support this.

The NHS has a carbon footprint of 22.8 million tonnes CO2e per year. This includes emissions from building use, travel, purchasing of goods and services and commissioning1. Dentistry contributes 3% to this footprint2 which equates to 0.9 million tonnes CO2 per year. With climate change reported to be the biggest threat to global health in the 21st century, sustainable healthcare is more relevant now than ever. Training in this area is becoming increasingly valuable as the need to improve value from finite resources and move towards low carbon, high-quality models of care becomes more apparent.

The elearning resource has been developed by dentists, Devika Vadher and Divya Verma, working with the Centre for Sustainable Healthcare (CSH) as Sustainable Dentistry Scholars – part-time roles funded by Health Education Kent, Surrey and Sussex.

The launch of the elearning resource coincides with NHS Sustainability Day 2016 on 24th March which is a nationally recognised day for action on climate change, engaging everyone across the NHS and social care systems.

For more information on the elearning session, visit http://portal.e-lfh.org.uk/Component/Details/424027