Forest Streeter

Where Does Climate Change Fit Into the New Curriculum?

Mentor: Jacob Robson, MD

Department: Pediatrics

(A) The World Health Organization has declared climate change is the largest global health threat of the 21st century with recent estimates that 3.6 billion people are already highly susceptible. As future physicians train to treat disease, it is critical to be aware of how climate and pollution are affecting our communities. Furthermore, studying how to reduce the healthcare industry’s large contribution will prepare them for spearheading a transition to sustainable healthcare. The University of Utah recently piloted a new medical curriculum, and it is unclear how much sustainability content is included. We combed all Phase 1 materials (excluding pathways) in order to catalog the current Education in Sustainable Healthcare (ESH) content, offering insights in how to implement ESH moving forward. (B)We went through all materials (lectures, readings, videos) and noted each time 1. environmental risk factors, 2. Social Determinants of Health (SDOH), 3. ESH showed up in the curriculum. Additionally the pedagogical modality, whether the material was required, and if it had a designated learning objective were noted. (C) We found 24 references to environmental influences on health, and 89 references to SDOH including race, socioeconomic status, or gender. A majority of these references were within Essentials, the didactic portion of the curriculum. (D) Although the ESH references were indeed present, a majority of them were included in dense textbook readings and some were offered in supplemental materials or resources. Considering many students no longer engage with these, we recommend development of more focused, lecture-based ESH content.