Planetary health is largely interconnected with nursing practice as the environment we live in can have a direct impact on patient health. Patients who are living in areas with pollution or chemical exposure or have limited access to clean water have an increased risk of compromised health as a result of their living conditions. The addition of the potential health issues arising from the environment increases demand for healthcare. As nurses, we see the direct impact of environmental damage through our patients and the health issues they face. We cannot reverse what has already been done to our Earth but there is an opportunity to improve the conditions and reduce the risk of environment-related health compromise. While the influential link between the health of the Earth and the health of the patient is known, healthcare practice does not always work to support the improvement of both. The promotion and implementation of sustainable practices within healthcare is limited.

There are many different barriers to introducing more sustainable practices into nursing care across individual, institutional and societal levels. At every level, education surrounding the importance and benefit of sustainable practice needs to be increased. Nursing education is greatly limited in its exploration of what planetary health encompasses, how it can be implemented and what we need to be sustainable practitioners. Improving education can assist in overcoming barriers including feelings of “what difference can one person make?”, the logistics of organising, financing and implementing sustainable processes and improving the availability of services for recycling, generating greener energy and creating more sustainable products. Education of sustainable nursing also provides an avenue for discussion and sharing for sustainable practices, resources and products which will further improve our journey towards a more sustainable healthcare system.