Southmead Hospital's neurosurgery team cut emissions by nearly 80 per cent in Green Operating Day trial.

Theatre staff in North Bristol NHS Trust’s (NBT) Neurosurgery team at Southmead Hospital delivered a Green Operating Day to reduce carbon emissions, in what is believed to be a sustainability first for the NHS.

The team devised a one-day trial, run simultaneously across all neurosurgical theatres to see how sustainably they could run their operating list. 

The NHS accounts for 4 per cent of the UK's total carbon footprint and 50 to 70 per cent of total hospital waste comes from operating theatres.

On the day, staff made a range of operational and behavioural changes designed to reduce waste and energy use across the department, including staff travel and diet choices.

The changes resulted in emissions connected with operations on the day being reduced by at least 77 per cent.  

The team achieved this by Liaising with suppliers on the logistics of transporting equipment in a carbon-neutral way, minimising single-use equipment, and switching to reusable equipment and PPE wherever possible.

They also aimed to reduce staff emissions by encouraging those working to use sustainable travel and maintain a plant-based diet while at work.

Minimising unnecessary energy use within theatres, exploring alternative lower-carbon surgical anaesthesia options, and using technology to support remote follow-up and programming of devices to minimise patient travel were also methods used to reduce emissions.

The project involved collaboration between NBT’s Neurosurgery team and Pain Clinic, with the sustainability team guiding on green operating best practices, as well as collating and analysing data on total emissions reductions.

In addition to the NHS’s existing sustainability goals, NBT has committed to becoming net zero by 2030.