Planetary health education in Indian medical curricula
Prasoon Pattanaik, Anandita Pattnaik

TL;DR
This study examines how planetary health is taught in Indian medical schools and suggests ways to improve it for a sustainable healthcare system.
Contribution
The study provides actionable recommendations to enhance planetary health education in Indian medical curricula.
Findings
Indian medical schools show uneven integration of planetary health education.
Critical topics like healthcare carbon footprints are often overlooked in curricula.
All schools have made progress in campus sustainability but lack dedicated coursework.
Abstract
This study assesses the state of planetary health education in Indian medical schools and proposes actionable recommendations for enhancement. The Planetary Health Report Card (PHRC), an international student-driven metric-based tool, was used to evaluate planetary health content in six report cards from four prominent Indian medical schools. Five key categories were evaluated: planetary health curriculum, interdisciplinary research, community outreach and advocacy, support for student initiatives, and campus sustainability measures. Disparities were found in integrating planetary health into medical education among surveyed schools. While some topics like "the effect of extreme heat and pollution on health" were commonly integrated, critical topics such as "the carbon footprint of healthcare systems" were often overlooked. Limited interdisciplinary research and community engagement…
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Taxonomy
TopicsClimate Change and Health Impacts · Public Health Policies and Education · Health and Conflict Studies
