Spotlight on Greener Practice – meet Dr Guy Pilsworth
Greener Practice is “a community of healthcare professionals working together to inspire sustainable primary care”. We take a look at the resources they offer to help colleagues take action, and meet the co-chair of the Greener Practice Glasgow group, Dr Guy Pilsworth, to hear about their work.
We know that the climate and ecological emergency is a health emergency – so by taking action to help tackle climate change, we can also help improve people’s health and wellbeing.
We all have a part to play – whatever our role. And there are many ways we can make changes.
Greener Practice helps healthcare professionals do exactly this, within primary care. They’re made up of over 30 special interest groups and local groups across the UK, including six groups in Scotland. We’ve added an overview of Greener Practice and what they offer to the resources section of this site (please note you’ll need to sign in or register for the resources section to access this).
To find out more, we caught up with Dr Guy Pilsworth, GP Partner at Denbridge Medical Practice in Bearsden, to shine a spotlight on the work of the Greener Practice Glasgow group.
What led you to become interested in sustainability?
“Over the years I’ve done a lot of hillwalking and mountaineering, so you become more aware of the environment. And my family and friends too – my mum supported Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth in the 1980s, and I had friends at university that shared my interest too, so I’ve grown up around people thinking about climate change and what we can do about it.”
How did you find out about Greener Practice?
“I think Greener Practice has developed very organically. I heard about it through a friend who mentioned it after COP26 taking place in Glasgow in 2021 – there was such a big impetus around that time.
“It’s really invigorating to be part of this kind of grassroots, organic kind of organisation. I’d describe it as an affiliation of healthcare professionals who believe in improving healthcare both for patients and for the climate.
“Times are challenging, but this is such a positive, progressive area to work in, with a lot of opportunity for change.”
What does your local group do?
“My Glasgow group co-chair, Dr Sian Ashby, set up our local Greener Practice Glasgow group in summer 2020 and I’ve picked up chairing while she is on maternity leave.
“It’s a really welcoming, positive group of people who all see a path where everyone gets something out of this – everyone wins – patients, the environment and the public purse.
“One thing that’s surprised me is how varied and diverse it is.
“On the active travel side, we’ve set up a Ride for their Lives. We did that in conjunction with the low emissions zones (LEZs) coming in, setting up cycle rides around the Glasgow LEZ and then bringing together a mixture of healthcare professionals to take part. We’ve had local councillors come on those rides, and an incoming MP too.
“We’ve also got people looking at education and training as this is so important. A colleague developed a ‘greening general practice’ guide for practices which focuses on prescribing and waste.
“And we have people who are involved with public health who’ve prepared press releases, which got some media coverage. We’re at our best when we collaborate, aren’t we?
“GPs and healthcare professionals play an important role in communities, and it’s been good to be able to use our voices to raise awareness. As healthcare professionals, we bring a lot of knowledge to the table, and we’re in such a privileged position as we’re so trusted – I think that gives us a responsibility to help lead the way.
“I believe people want that leadership and the ability to ask questions and challenge established ways of doing things if we can see a way of doing them better – in ways that help patients and the planet.”
What does taking climate action mean to you?
“By nature, we’re pragmatic, practical people in the NHS. We work hard to find evidence-based solutions that work for everybody. It’s encouraging to find that many sustainable solutions are either cost effective or cost neutral.
“Tackling climate change in NHSScotland ties in really well with all the work around realistic medicine (which puts patients at the heart of decision-making, creating a supported, personalised approach based on what matters most to the patient). Realistic medicine also encourages innovation and improvement, which I think helps us make evidence-based choices which are beneficial to patients and also benefit the environment too. Thinking and questioning things helps us to make sure we keep improving.
“And, crucially, we can all help by communicating this to our patients – most people are enthusiastic when you explain that choosing a particular medication will help the environment. They get it, they want to make a difference.”
How can people get more involved in sustainability?
“I’d say we can all play a role.
“One of the great things about getting involved in sustainability is seeing the amazing individuals looking around them and making changes locally, like the nurse I met who looked at waste in her ward and thought “how can I make this better, how can we do something different that will help?”. She was able to speak to the consultants and the head nurse and explain where sustainable changes can be made that reduce waste and save money.
“I think anybody, anywhere in the system can look around them and say, why are we doing this? Asking questions. Could we do this better?
“Whether I’m thinking of sustainability in general, or getting involved in Greener Practice, one of the aspects I like most is that you can bring your interests or your experience or your expertise.
“Whether you want to look at active travel, education, waste, any area – we all have different skills and we’re at our best when we collaborate. And you can give as much or as little of your time as you want.”
Find out more
To contact Dr Guy Pilsworth or the Greener Practice Glasgow group, visit their local group page on the Greener Practice site or email greenerpracticeglasgow@gmail.com