Take one hospital bed, 50 sets of fairtrade surgical scrubs, one sick planet and over one hundred health professionals. Fire them up with calls for urgent action on climate change from an inspiring team of speakers and unleash them on central London. This is what happened at the health feeder event hosted by the Royal College of Nursing on 5th December prior to the Wave.
The impact of the blue scrubs and the hospital bed was huge - there was no doubt about the presence of health professionals on the march. To highlight the health co-benefits of action on climate change prescriptions for a healthy planet were given out as the Wave flowed through London. Perhaps the most important recipient was Ed Miliband. He appeared receptive to the health arguments for bold action on climate change and wanted to learn more.
The health feeder event was organised by a broad coalition of organisations: the Campaign for Greener Healthcare, Medsin, Medact, the Climate & Health Council, the Royal College of Nursing and the NHS Sustainable Development Unit. Additional support was gratefully received from OMCC, the Organic Medical Clothing Company who supplied the fairtrade blue scrubs and Jonahh Photography who captured the images on the day.
Further coverage of the event is available here:
Blog by Tony Waterston, Medact on BMJ.com
Blog by David Pencheon, NHS SDU on BMJ.com
Blog by Alison Whyte, Medact on Speaking of Medicine
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