Ethical dilemmas in climate change and healthcare delivery: a cross-sectional survey of US patient perspectives.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Healthcare delivery produces substantial emissions that contribute to climate change and harm human health. Patient perspectives on ethical dilemmas, such as tradeoffs between individual health choices and public health harms mediated by climate change, are unclear.

Methods

This cross-sectional survey randomly sampled adult patients across four US health systems to assess their perspectives on ethical dilemmas in climate change and healthcare delivery; results were compared to a previous nationwide survey of US-based physicians. The mailed survey was developed iteratively through pre-testing and was designed to detect a 15% difference in the proportion willing to limit treatment options because of environmental impact according to respondents' perceived impact of

SUBMITTER: Hantel A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12918491 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature