Speakers
Dr. Clifford L SHELTON
United Kingdom
Cliff Shelton is clinical lead for sustainability in the Wythenshawe Hospital Department of Anaesthesia and a co-opted member of the Association of Anaesthetists Environment and Sustainability Committee. He supervises sustainable healthcare fellows in the North West School of Anaesthesia and was the co-lead for the “Greener Operations” James Lind Alliance research priority setting partnership.
Innovation is often presented as the solution to our environmental challenges, and yet the innovation process - design, extraction, manufacture, and so-on, all consumes energy and material, and releases carbon dioxide. Furthermore, much innovation is pioneered by industry - who make money through sales - hence, driving consumption.
Is there a role for innovation in making in anaesthesia greener? Or should we focus on reducing resource use instead?
In this presentation I will describe four innovations: volatile capture, nitrous oxide destruction, reusable devices and disposables that are 'recyclable by design', and consider the evidence for their environmental impacts.
There is a risk that innovation becomes a distraction, but by taking an evidence-based approach, we can ensure that reduction in resource use remains a priority focus. I believe that there is a useful role for innovation in sustainable anaesthesia - but it should not stand in the way of the basic principles of responsible resource management.
