Bridging the green gap: knowledge and practices of sustainable healthcare among medical and dental students of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Sustainable healthcare: student practices

Abstract

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE:

Environmental destruction resulting from power usage, waste, and resource-intensive practices in the health sector has become a global issue. Eco-friendly notions seem inadequately presented in undergraduate medical and dental programs in developing nations, despite of raised global awareness about eco-friendly health practices. The aim of our study was to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and abilities of undergraduate medical and dental students regarding eco-friendly practices.

METHODOLOGY:
A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at Frontier Medical and Dental College, Abbottabad, KPK(January–May 2025). A total of 270 students of third-, fourth-, and final-year MBBS, and second-, third-, and final-year BDS completed a pre-validated, closed-ended, 27-item questionnaire. The sampling process involved 290 students, of whom 270 completed the survey (93% response rate). Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS v20.

RESULTS:
Out of 290 students invited, a response rate of 93% (N=270) was achieved, with 135 each in BDS and MBBS. A total of 60% recorded energy savings, 77.78 %   reflected awareness of recycling practices, and 72.96% had knowledge about waste management despite of practical non-compliance, as 54% still reported disposal of major waste in general Bins. About 78.2% of participants were interested in further training on biomedical waste management. Awareness about wastemanagement appeared higher among BDS Students than MBBS students (77.0% vs. 68.9%), though this difference was not statistically significant.