For an allied health professional (AHP), or person working alongside or in support of AHPs, with leadership or oversight within a local health or care system.

AHPs champion and promote diverse and inclusive leadership

Environmental sustainability – How could I hold the net zero agenda central to my system-level decision making, and is my AHP community contributing to the delivery of my Green Plan (or equivalent)?

• Your organisation will have a Green Plan that you can familiarise yourself with and consider how AHPs can contribute to its delivery.
• The Centre for Sustainable Healthcare provides resources for implementing your NHS Green Plan.
• The ‘Delivering a ‘Net Zero’ National Health Service’ report includes principles and examples of sustainable practice.
• Here are suggestions of how AHPs can make a positive impact towards net zero.
• The four principles of Sustainable Clinical Practice can be applied to AHP practice, with the first two already being integral to many AHPs.

AHPs in the right place, at the right time, with the right skills

Environmental sustainability – What structures are in place to support AHPs across the system to work in greener ways, including promotion of public health and preventative healthcare approaches and access to current sustainable healthcare training?

• The Greener NHS training hub brings together a variety of training and educational offers at the intersection of climate and health.
• The free to access Environmentally Sustainable Healthcare training programme from the Centre for Sustainable Healthcare (CSH) and Greener NHS.
• Public health and prevention are areas where AHPs are well placed to lead on net zero.
• Training about preventative healthcare and climate change can be accessed for free through ‘All Our Health’.
• This climate and health focused ‘All Our Health’ guide helps health and care professionals prevent ill health and promote wellbeing as part of their everyday practice.
• Materials for the Greener AHP Lunch and Learn session can be accessed in the Greener AHP Forum, which is part of the National AHP Virtual Hub on Future NHS
• The Centre for Sustainable Healthcare provides further courses in sustainable healthcare.

AHPs commit to research, innovation, and evaluation

Environmental sustainability – How could I support, collate and share examples of greener AHP practice across my system, and learn from other systems to achieve a more sustainable delivery of care?

How could I support, collate and share examples of Greener AHP practice across my system?

• The Environmentally Sustainable Healthcare training programme includes a free session on ‘Environmental Sustainability in Quality Improvement’ (SusQI).
• There is information about Quality Improvement on the Greener AHP Hub.
• Principles of sustainable models of care can be found in Greener NHS’ areas of focus.
• There is information about sustainable models of care on the Greener AHP Hub.
• The Sustainable Healthcare Coalition’s care pathways carbon calculator. The calculator provides estimates of carbon values for commonly found healthcare activities such as appointments.
• You could link in with your organisational/service sustainability groups/leads.
• Email cahpo@nhs.net with your examples of Greener AHP practice for possible case studies.

How could I learn from other systems to achieve a more sustainable delivery of care?

• The National AHP Virtual Hub on Future NHS has a Greener AHP Forum.
• The Greener NHS Community has a member space on Future NHS.
• The Centre for Sustainable Healthcare have networks for different clinical specialities, including AHP Susnet and other AHP networks.

AHPs can further harness digital technology and innovation through data

Environmental sustainability – What mechanisms could I put in place to enable AHPs to adopt technologies for greener healthcare with system-wide benefits?

• Digital transformation is an area where AHPs are well placed to lead on net zero.
• Information about digital, low-carbon transformation can be found on page 72 of the ‘Delivering a Net Zero NHS’ report.