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Shining a light on materials use

Critical lifecycle assessment and knowledge sharing onchildbirth in Suriname and the Netherlands

Research Line: Circular Safe Hospitals / Seed Call: i4CS October 2024

During the 77th World Health Assembly in May 2024, WHO member states adopted a resolution on Climate Change and Health. Co-sponsored by The Netherlands, the resolution urges member states to develop national health adaptation plans and to share knowledge and best practices through the Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH), a platform led by the WHO.

The goal of our project is to facilitate bidirectional knowledge sharing about the use of circulatory materials between healthcare providers and procurement teams in Suriname and the Netherlands. This knowledge can also be shared with ATACH. A key guiding principle of this project is the belief that healthcare systems in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) can offer valuable, evidence-informed lessons about sustainable, safe, and circular product use that high-income countries (HICs) can learn from.

Healthcare systems in countries such as Suriname hold critical insights into creating more climate-resilient health systems that can benefit countries like the Netherlands. This project represents a unique opportunity to design and implement epistemically just research, which adheres to fair knowledge practices by prioritizing historically overlooked or underrepresented sources and carriers of knowledge.

Objectives and Route to Impact

The project aims to develop a replicable plan for epistemically just knowledge co-production and sharing on circular practices in healthcare. It will focus on life cycle assessment (LCA) of childbirth procedures (vaginal and cesarean) at Academic Hospital Paramaribo in Suriname and UMCU in the Netherlands. The project builds on existing LCA studies in high-income countries (HICs) and low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), with childbirth chosen for its symbolic significance linked to intergenerational justice.

The first step will involve a literature review and analysis of grey literature on obstetric procedures, followed by the development of an exploratory research protocol that includes both qualitative and quantitative data collection. This will involve field observations, ethnographic filming, dossier research, and interviews with healthcare practitioners in both countries.

After the data collection phase in Suriname and the Netherlands, both teams will collaborate on preliminary data analysis and dissemination, including creating an ethnographic film. The data will be compared to existing research to ensure alignment with previous LCA work. Finally, a follow-up protocol for a detailed life cycle analysis (LCA) will be developed.

This project aims to:

  1. Develop a replicable plan for knowledge co-production and sharing about circular practices in healthcare, based on a childbirth case study between LMIC and HIC collaborating partners.
  2. Increase stakeholder and public awareness of the cultural embeddedness of healthcare practices and procedures through an ethnographic film.
  3. Collect quantitative and qualitative evidence to support best practices regarding circular material use, which can be shared with both Dutch and Surinamese healthcare systems and WHO members.

Contribution to cross-EWUU Collaboration

The team composition fosters new collaborations within the EWUU network and with international and national societal partners. UMCU, UU, and WUR have previously collaborated on planetary health and maternal health topics. With this grant, TU/e will also join, marking the first EWUU-supported project with a focus on Global South partners. This presents a unique opportunity for EWUU (a high-income country) to engage low- and middle-income country (LMIC) partners, creating new scientific and societal impact pathways. This collaboration aligns with the global dimensions of planetary health, emphasizing the interconnectedness of humans and the environment.

In the first three months, stakeholder mapping will be conducted to identify relevant partners and ensure the early identification of knowledge translation pathways. This phase also provides a unique opportunity to engage non-governmental and semi-governmental stakeholders.

Team

Contact

Megan Milota

M.M.Milota@umcutrecht.nl