{"id":172306,"date":"2025-01-21T03:13:02","date_gmt":"2025-01-21T02:13:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/fremtidens-laeger-skal-klaedes-paa-til-klimaforandringer\/"},"modified":"2025-01-22T08:06:17","modified_gmt":"2025-01-22T07:06:17","slug":"future-doctors-need-to-know-about-climate-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/future-doctors-need-to-know-about-climate-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Future doctors need to know about climate change"},"content":{"rendered":"

T<\/span>he University of Copenhagen\u2019s (UCPH) medical and health programme has got a new curriculum, which started in the autumn semester 2024.<\/p>\n

In addition to knowing a lot about the human body, medical students need to have \u00bbknowledge of the fundamental principles of global health and sustainability in relation to public health and health services.\u00ab<\/p>\n

\u00bbSustainability is relevant in all contexts, and the goal is therefore to integrate it into all courses on the medical programme. Our ambition is for students to come across the subject at least once a year,\u00ab says Torben Lykke S\u00f8rensen, clinical professor and head of studies at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences.<\/p>\n

According to the head of studies, sustainability on the medical programme is partly about making future medical doctors aware of resource (over)consumption in the healthcare system, and partly about preparing them to prevent, understand, and treat diseases that will arise in connection with climate change.<\/p>\n

\u00bbBefore the curriculum took effect, the study board selected a number of courses where we thought sustainability should take up more space, and we asked the teaching staff to integrate the theme,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

New ambitions still in process<\/h3>\n

There are already several courses on the medical programme which deal with how climate change affects the medical profession, according to Torben Lykke S\u00f8rensen. But the point of the new curriculum is that sustainability and climate change should be an important part of virtually all subjects.<\/p>\n

The focus of the medical degree programme is typically on how to treat a red eye or a blood clot in the brain. Here, climate and sustainability might be a secondary concern<\/p>\n

Torben Lykke S\u00f8rensen, head of studies, Medicine<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u00bbThere are several courses where it makes sense to talk about it. For example on the bachelor’s degree course \u2018The paraclinic’s role in diagnostics\u2019 where, in addition to teaching the students how to diagnose, you could also talk about how many resources are needed to conduct blood tests and scans,\u00ab he says and adds:<\/p>\n

\u00bbImplementation is still in process. But this is something we are continuously keeping an eye on. We have just had a first aid course, for example, where we asked the instructors to mention how you can minimize the consumption of needles and things like that,\u00ab says Torben Lykke S\u00f8rensen.<\/p>\n

Initiatives like this often come from students or lecturers, but in fact the idea originated primarily in the board of studies, says the head of studies.<\/p>\n

\u00bbI’ve been a bit surprised about how little student pressure there has been on this agenda. I think this has been because the focus of the medical degree programme is typically on how to treat a red eye or a blood clot in the brain. Here, climate and sustainability might be a secondary concern,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

The board of studies has held a few meetings with a small student organisation on the medical programme however. They called for more teaching on sustainability, says the head of studies.<\/p>\n

The future has damp, pollen, and rats<\/h3>\n

Marie Pedersen is an associate professor at the Department of Public Health and teaches a compulsory master’s degree course in statistics, epidemiology and medical sociology.<\/p>\n

The course has existed since the autumn semester 2023 and is therefore not based on the new curriculum, but deals with themes such as sustainability and the importance of climate change for the medical profession.<\/p>\n

If you are going to work as a general practitioner, it is important that you know that asthma can be exacerbated by air pollution. Or that there are particularly vulnerable groups who will be exposed to heat waves<\/p>\n

Marie Pedersen, associate professor, Department of Public Health<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u00bbI teach what the links are between climate change and health effects, and how climate change and environmental exposures are connected, and the methods we use in epidemiological studies,\u00ab she says and continues:<\/p>\n

\u00bbI also briefly touch on the causes of climate change, for example our resource consumption.\u00ab<\/p>\n

According to Marie Pedersen, climate change is one of the biggest public health threats, and should be included in the compulsory syllabus for the medical programme.<\/p>\n

\u00bbIf you are going to work as a general practitioner, it is important that you know that asthma can be exacerbated by air pollution. And that there are particularly vulnerable groups who will be exposed to heat waves. And that there may be new infectious diseases as a result of heavy sun exposure or flooding,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n

Milder winters with more frequent flooding can attract rats that can carry diseases, just like they can result in damp and mould in houses, which can pose health challenges. Global temperature increases can mean longer pollen seasons, which can cause discomfort in the form of allergies.<\/p>\n

These are all things that doctors should be aware of, both now and in the future, says Marie Pedersen.<\/p>\n

\u00bbThe doctors are also the ones who can contribute to understanding and communicating these correlations, and thereby influence the political agenda. This goes for both the green transition and sustainability in general, but also in relation to public health and the enormous preventive potential of living more sustainably,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n

Needed teaching on climate<\/h3>\n

Helena Udsen is on her tenth semester of medicine and has taken a few courses where sustainability was touched upon.<\/p>\n

\u00bbSome of the teaching has been about why climate change occurs in the first place, and some of it has been about the health consequences. I would have liked more of the second part,\u00ab she says and adds:<\/p>\n

Of course, we will have to see whether this is implemented or whether it just remains words on a piece of paper<\/p>\n

Helena Udsen, medical student<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u00bbMost people of my generation are already quite aware of climate change, so we would rather be taught how it affects health and what we can do about it.\u00ab<\/p>\n

If you ask Helena Udsen, the subject should take up much more space in her study programme than it has.<\/p>\n

\u00bbI think it’s important for those of us who have to go out and work with it as doctors afterwards. In connection with compensation cases, for example, where we need to place responsibility when patients die from things they may not have died from previously,\u00ab she says. Helena Udsen adds that she hopes that her generation of doctors will become more aware of minimizing their own carbon footprint.<\/p>\n

\u00bbI hope that the students who will be using the new curriculum will get much more of this type of teaching. Of course, we will have to see whether this is implemented or whether it just remains words on a piece of paper.\u00ab
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","name":"woman-wearing-face-mask-because-of-air-pollution-in-the-city","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":172155,"date":"2025-01-16 12:01:48","modified":"2025-01-16 12:20:52","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1254,"height":836,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670-480x320.jpg","medium-width":480,"medium-height":320,"medium_large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670.jpg","large-width":1254,"large-height":836,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670.jpg","1536x1536-width":1254,"1536x1536-height":836,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670.jpg","2048x2048-width":1254,"2048x2048-height":836,"featured-soft":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670-290x193.jpg","featured-soft-width":290,"featured-soft-height":193,"featured-hard":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670-290x180.jpg","featured-hard-width":290,"featured-hard-height":180,"narrow":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670-700x467.jpg","narrow-width":700,"narrow-height":467,"extended":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670-990x660.jpg","extended-width":990,"extended-height":660}},"style":"full","text_placement":"metadata-below","image_link_url":"","image_link_title":"","caption_prefix":"","enable_alternative_caption":true,"alternative_caption":"Medical students should encounter sustainability and climate change on their courses at least once a year, according to the head of the medicine study programme."},{"acf_fc_layout":"Standfirst","subject":"","text":"This is a story about what will follow","use_post_excerpt":true},{"acf_fc_layout":"Byline","is_author":true,"contributors":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"Content","content":"<p><span class=\"dropcap\">T<\/span>he University of Copenhagen\u2019s (UCPH) medical and health programme has got a new curriculum, which started in the autumn semester 2024.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to knowing a lot about the human body, medical students need to have \u00bbknowledge of the fundamental principles of global health and sustainability in relation to public health and health services.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbSustainability is relevant in all contexts, and the goal is therefore to integrate it into all courses on the medical programme. Our ambition is for students to come across the subject at least once a year,\u00ab says Torben Lykke S\u00f8rensen, clinical professor and head of studies at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences.<\/p>\n<p>According to the head of studies, sustainability on the medical programme is partly about making future medical doctors aware of resource (over)consumption in the healthcare system, and partly about preparing them to prevent, understand, and treat diseases that will arise in connection with climate change.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbBefore the curriculum took effect, the study board selected a number of courses where we thought sustainability should take up more space, and we asked the teaching staff to integrate the theme,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<h3>New ambitions still in process<\/h3>\n<p>There are already several courses on the medical programme which deal with how climate change affects the medical profession, according to Torben Lykke S\u00f8rensen. But the point of the new curriculum is that sustainability and climate change should be an important part of virtually all subjects.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The focus of the medical degree programme is typically on how to treat a red eye or a blood clot in the brain. Here, climate and sustainability might be a secondary concern<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Torben Lykke S\u00f8rensen, head of studies, Medicine<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbThere are several courses where it makes sense to talk about it. For example on the bachelor’s degree course \u2018The paraclinic’s role in diagnostics\u2019 where, in addition to teaching the students how to diagnose, you could also talk about how many resources are needed to conduct blood tests and scans,\u00ab he says and adds:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbImplementation is still in process. But this is something we are continuously keeping an eye on. We have just had a first aid course, for example, where we asked the instructors to mention how you can minimize the consumption of needles and things like that,\u00ab says Torben Lykke S\u00f8rensen.<\/p>\n<p>Initiatives like this often come from students or lecturers, but in fact the idea originated primarily in the board of studies, says the head of studies.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI’ve been a bit surprised about how little student pressure there has been on this agenda. I think this has been because the focus of the medical degree programme is typically on how to treat a red eye or a blood clot in the brain. Here, climate and sustainability might be a secondary concern,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>The board of studies has held a few meetings with a small student organisation on the medical programme however. They called for more teaching on sustainability, says the head of studies.<\/p>\n<h3>The future has damp, pollen, and rats<\/h3>\n<p>Marie Pedersen is an associate professor at the Department of Public Health and teaches a compulsory master’s degree course in statistics, epidemiology and medical sociology.<\/p>\n<p>The course has existed since the autumn semester 2023 and is therefore not based on the new curriculum, but deals with themes such as sustainability and the importance of climate change for the medical profession.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>If you are going to work as a general practitioner, it is important that you know that asthma can be exacerbated by air pollution. Or that there are particularly vulnerable groups who will be exposed to heat waves<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Marie Pedersen, associate professor, Department of Public Health<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbI teach what the links are between climate change and health effects, and how climate change and environmental exposures are connected, and the methods we use in epidemiological studies,\u00ab she says and continues:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI also briefly touch on the causes of climate change, for example our resource consumption.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>According to Marie Pedersen, climate change is one of the biggest public health threats, and should be included in the compulsory syllabus for the medical programme.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIf you are going to work as a general practitioner, it is important that you know that asthma can be exacerbated by air pollution. And that there are particularly vulnerable groups who will be exposed to heat waves. And that there may be new infectious diseases as a result of heavy sun exposure or flooding,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n<p>Milder winters with more frequent flooding can attract rats that can carry diseases, just like they can result in damp and mould in houses, which can pose health challenges. Global temperature increases can mean longer pollen seasons, which can cause discomfort in the form of allergies.<\/p>\n<p>These are all things that doctors should be aware of, both now and in the future, says Marie Pedersen.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe doctors are also the ones who can contribute to understanding and communicating these correlations, and thereby influence the political agenda. This goes for both the green transition and sustainability in general, but also in relation to public health and the enormous preventive potential of living more sustainably,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n<h3>Needed teaching on climate<\/h3>\n<p>Helena Udsen is on her tenth semester of medicine and has taken a few courses where sustainability was touched upon.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbSome of the teaching has been about why climate change occurs in the first place, and some of it has been about the health consequences. I would have liked more of the second part,\u00ab she says and adds:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Of course, we will have to see whether this is implemented or whether it just remains words on a piece of paper<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Helena Udsen, medical student<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbMost people of my generation are already quite aware of climate change, so we would rather be taught how it affects health and what we can do about it.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>If you ask Helena Udsen, the subject should take up much more space in her study programme than it has.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI think it’s important for those of us who have to go out and work with it as doctors afterwards. In connection with compensation cases, for example, where we need to place responsibility when patients die from things they may not have died from previously,\u00ab she says. Helena Udsen adds that she hopes that her generation of doctors will become more aware of minimizing their own carbon footprint.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI hope that the students who will be using the new curriculum will get much more of this type of teaching. Of course, we will have to see whether this is implemented or whether it just remains words on a piece of paper.\u00ab<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"ArticleEnd"},{"acf_fc_layout":"Newsletter","lang_select":"en","identifier":"Newsletter","headline":"Get an email with our top stories","button_text":"Sign up here","class":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"OtherStories","headline":"","hand_picked_posts":false,"references":false,"category":false,"theme":false,"number_of_posts":"4","style":"default"}]},"taxonomyData":{"category":[{"term_id":42,"name":"Education","slug":"education","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":42,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":661,"filter":"raw"}],"post_tag":[],"post_format":[],"expression":[{"term_id":18,"name":"Feature Article","slug":"feature_article","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":18,"taxonomy":"expression","description":"","parent":0,"count":1200,"filter":"raw"}],"translation_priority":[{"term_id":5468,"name":"Optional","slug":"optional-en","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":5468,"taxonomy":"translation_priority","description":"","parent":0,"count":672,"filter":"raw"}]},"featured_media_url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/istock1016687670.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172306","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/99"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172306"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172306\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":172314,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172306\/revisions\/172314"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/172165"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}