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Fossil-Fuel Pollution and Climate Change – A New NEJM Group Series

06/15/2022 | New England Journal of Medicine

To call attention to rising global greenhouse gas emissions that harm our health, Dr. Renee Salas, our Yerby Fellow and ClimateMD leader, co-authored an editorial in NEJM announcing a broad effort by the journal to address the health consequences of air pollution and climate change.

Dr. Salas and her co-authors notably write, “The primary barrier to an equitable transition away from coal, oil, and natural gas is a lack of political will, underpinned by the influence of the fossil-fuel industry.”

NEJMs goals are to:

  • Inform clinicians and health system administrators about the consequences of fossil-fuel extraction and use that are increasingly affecting patients and care delivery systems
  • Provide information about effective strategies for reducing the associated risks
  • Clarify the roles of the medical and public health sectors in addressing this crisis and stimulate research to guide the development of equitable adaptation and mitigation policies

NEJM is committing to:

  • Publish at least one article in a NEJM Group journal each month related to fossil-fuel–driven health harms and will subsequently plan ongoing coverage of related content
  • Further engage trainees and educators through their Resident 360 website, which is launching a discussion about incorporating a climate lens into medical training
  • Encourage submissions for this series, especially — but not limited to — high-quality original research

The initiative is launching with articles addressing different aspects of this unprecedented challenge in each of the NEJM journals.

Read the editorial

The medical response to climate change

Our Director Dr. Aaron Bernstein lays out five pillars for the medical response to climate change.

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Adding A Climate Lens To Health Policy In The United States

Our Yerby Fellow Dr. Renee Salas and Interim Director Dr. Aaron Bernstein outline specific recommendations for achieving climate action through health policy and decision making.

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'We Don't Have To Live This Way': Doctors Call For Climate Action

A sprawling analysis published by The Lancet focuses on public health data from 2019, and finds that heat waves, air pollution and extreme weather increasingly damage human health.

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Challenges and opportunities to sustainably scale up surgical, obstetric, and anaesthesia care globally

Strategies for the surgical, obstetric, and anaesthesia community to sustainably scale up SOA care to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and address health equity and social justice issues.

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A pathway to net zero emissions for healthcare

Dr. Renee Salas charts a path to net zero emissions for healthcare.

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The first residency curriculum to better prepare doctors for climate change

New framework can teach medical residents how climate changes affects health, clinical care, and health care delivery.

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The climate crisis and COVID-19—A major threat to the pandemic response

Strategies for local communities and states to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission during climate-related extreme events like heat waves, hurricanes, and wildfires.

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Climate Change and Cancer

Climate actions can make cancer treatment facilities more resilient and improve cancer outcomes.

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The climate crisis and clinical practice

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In the hot seat: What climate change looks like in the exam room

ER physician Dr. Renee Salas talks about her experience as a doctor in the wake of the climate crisis.

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How to breathe easier during allergy season?

A pediatrician's perspective on a warming planet and longer pollen seasons.

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Staying healthy in times of climate crisis

A conversation with our fellow Caleb Dresser on the medical community's approach to health risks during and after extreme weather events.

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Healthcare leaders on institutional response to climate change

An overview of our ClimateRx2020 Symposium, which brought together hospital leadership to discuss what health care institutions must do to prepare for climate change.

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Climate in the Clinic

Clinicians gathered for our Climate Crisis and Clinical Practice Symposium to learn about the impacts of climate change on health care delivery.

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Clinicians' challenge: 'Bring climate change to the bedside'

Our Climate Crisis and Clinical Practice Symposium kicked off a larger initiative to bring a climate lens to the health care community.

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Heatwave = heatstroke = ER visit

ER doctor Renee Salas on how doctors are seeing the impacts of climate change on health, and what they can do about it.

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Doctors meet in Boston to talk climate, health

ER doctor and Harvard Chan C-CHANGE fellow Renee Salas talks about the health impacts of climate change on health.

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Doc, I'm burning up

While many still think climate change is a problem for future generations, doctors are seeing the real effects of it on their patients now.

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Doctors highlight climate impacts on hospitals, healthcare

The Climate Crisis and Clinical Practice Symposium kicked off an initiative for the medical community to integrate a climate lens into healthcare delivery.

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Dr. Renee Salas

Renee N. Salas MD, MPH, MS

Renee's work focuses on the intersection of the climate crisis, health, and healthcare delivery.

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