The use of medicines in Portugal accounts for around 20% of greenhouse gas emissions in the health sector, a report – to be presented at the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in Lisbon today – estimates, warning of the lack of guidelines on more sustainable practices in the use of medicines.
According to the first report by the Portuguese Observatory for Health and the Environment, 180 million more packages of medicines were dispensed in Portugal in 2022 in community pharmacies, to which must be added around 274 million units (ampoules, tablets, capsules, among others) used and given away in hospitals.
“At a national level, there is still no evidence of interventions geared towards a more environmentally sustainable use of medicines and there are still no guidelines developed for the health system or its professionals in relation to (re)understanding the environmental impact of their therapeutic options and their role in a more responsible use of medicines and health products,” warns the text.
