Systematic Review of Nursing Interventions to Control and Manage Environmental Hazards in Health care Contexts

Abstract

Background: Healthcare settings are environmentally hazardous due to wrong waste management, poor air quality measures, and high resources consumption. As the most important providers of health care, nurses can significantly contribute to the mitigation of these hazards through well directed interventions. In fact, however, the implementation of sustainable practices in nursing is impeded by challenges of limited resources, lack of training and inadequate policy support.
Aim: The purpose of this systematic review is to assess the nursing interventions on the management of environmental hazards in healthcare settings and identify barriers, facilitators and best practice for promoting sustainability.
Method: Studies conducted from 2020 - 2024 were selected using systematic search of PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL, and google scholar. After a rigorous screening and selection process, 10 high quality studies were included. The themes, trends, and gaps were deduced from data extracted and synthesized on nursing led environmental interventions.
Results:The key themes were sustainability in nursing, climate responsive care, education and awareness, and organizational support. Waste segregation, resource optimization and air quality management nurse led interventions significantly improved environmental health and patients safety. Resource limitations, lack of training and insufficient policy integration are identified as barriers. Nurses’ awareness and capacity in implementing sustainable practice were found to increase greatly with the educational programs.
Conclusion:This review reinforces nurses' unique and key position as agents for the management of environmental hazards and the promotion of sustainability in healthcare. Effective education, policy integration, and interdisciplinary collaboration are necessary to cross the barriers to achieve sustainable healthcare systems. Actionable insights for advancing nursing practices in keeping with global sustainability goals are offered by the findings.