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Introducing the Climate Change Special Issue

Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The Western Journal of Emergency Medicine (WestJEM) is pleased to present its Climate Change Special Issue.These 23 manuscripts explore how choices in emergency department (ED) operations and processes affect climate change drivers, including greenhouse gas emissions.This special issue grew out of my suggestion to Editor-in-Chief Mark Langdorf, MD, MHPE, that the journal focus on climate issues, similar to its periodic special issues on medical education.Several factors prompted this suggestion:• In the United States, the healthcare industry contributes about 8.5% of all greenhouse gases produced in our economy.1 • Choices in emergency care delivery directly influence greenhouse gas production.When I first proposed this issue, I had recently served as Decision Editor for a WestJEM manuscript quantifying how the use of reusable, sterilizable oximeter probes in the ED could favorably reduce these emissions.2 • When the journal issued its "Call for Papers," the American Medical Association (AMA) had already adopted at least 12 policies addressing climate change.3 These policies include the following: o Policy D-135.966(last modified in 2024) declares climate change to be a public health crisis.It further states, the AMA "will protect patients by advocating for policies that:  Limit global warming to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius  Reduce US greenhouse gas emissions aimed at a 50 percent reduction in emissions by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2050."o Policy D-440-912 (last modified in 2023)advocates for a "net zero" carbon society by 2050.• Increased implementation of "telemedicine" since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has had a small but measurable and salutatory effect upon the healthcare industry's net output of greenhouse gases.
DOI: 10.5811/westjem.66424
Language: English
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $500
OpenAlex ID: W7214218673
FWCI:
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