UH Cardiovascular Medicine Chief Authors Roadmap to More Sustainable Cardiovascular Practice

Innovations in Cardiovascular Medicine & Surgery | December 2024

Sanjay Rajagopalan, MD

Sanjay Rajagopalan, MD, MBA, Chief of Cardiovascular Medicine for University Hospitals Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute and the Herman K. Hellerstein, MD, Professor of Cardiovascular Research, is lead author of an important new article published in the journal Nature Reviews Cardiology on the crucial subject of environmental sustainability in cardiovascular practice.

In the review, Dr. Rajagopalan and his co-authors make the case that cardiovascular health and environmental health are inextricably linked. More sustainable cardiovascular care, they write, and the resulting decreases in greenhouse gas emissions and pollution, would not only improve health metrics and societal well-being, but also reduce the cost of healthcare. Prevention, they argue, is a powerful approach to reduce these emissions.

Of course, this won’t be easy. Cardiovascular care has a large environmental footprint owing to high energy use and waste from devices and procedures, the authors write. They provide an overview of greenhouse gas emissions related to the provision of healthcare, including their measurement and quantification, carbon accounting, carbon disclosures and climate effects. In addition, they detail the emissions associated with various sectors of cardiovascular care. However, the authors also provide potential solutions, such as energy efficiency, renewable energy, waste reduction, disease prevention, innovation and circular economy principles to reduce carbon emissions and costs.

Dr. Rajagopalan and his colleagues write that lack of transparency and regulatory levers are hampering current sustainability efforts, but that frameworks for disclosures, target-setting and reporting emissions are emerging. Importantly, they call on fellow healthcare leaders to measure emissions, set reduction targets, redesign care and engage stakeholders in the transition to “sustainable models that improve value, outcomes and planetary health.” Finally, they highlight the challenges in environmental sustainability and future directions as applicable to cardiovascular practice.

Contributing Expert:
Sanjay Rajagopalan, MD
Chief, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine
University Hospitals Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute
Herman K. Hellerstein, MD Professor of Cardiovascular Research
Professor
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine