PSRM links environmental education and health during 'Environment Week'
The Sustainability Commission promoted actions on the theme 'Ending plastic pollution' involving children and their companions
In the year of the United Nations Conference on Climate Change, COP 30, which will be held in Belém next November, the Dr. Roberto Macedo Emergency Room (PSRM) reinforces the preservation of the Environment amidst the care for patients and companions. A broad program emphasized 'Environment Week', created by the United Nations (UN) and celebrated annually in the first week of June - from the 1st to the 5th, the date when 'World Environment Day' is remembered.
'As an environmental engineer working in public health, I realize that people still think sustainability has no relation to the hospital environment, but on the contrary, it does relate. At PSRM, we have a responsibility not only for the health of the population but also for the health of the planet, that is, life in its integral form,' points out Rayne Pereira, environmental engineer and president of the institution's sustainability committee.
The act of caring for the planet is part of the organizational culture of the hospital unit that deals daily with the consumption of various natural resources, such as water and electricity, and performs the correct disposal of some materials that are potentially hazardous, which, if handled improperly, can directly impact the environment.
'So, all of this is sustainability in practice. And the emergency room plays a fundamental role because it is a welcoming place where we attend to everyone from children to the elderly, and our greatest differential is precisely in the pediatric audience. Most children spend long periods hospitalized and away from school, and they have the opportunity to learn with us about environmental education in a light and meaningful way through bedside workshops.'
The professional highlights that children are multipliers of knowledge, as through them, 'we can encourage parents and companions. So, environmental education in these cases generates reflection, sensitivity, and also transforms the perspective of everyone who enters the unit. They come to understand that caring for the environment is also a way of caring for health. And when this happens within a hospital, the environmental agenda is strengthened,' analyzes Rayane Pinheiro.
Program
Organized by the Sustainability Commission and having the national theme: 'Ending plastic pollution', the action provided participants, at the hospital reception, lectures and the presentation of a documentary from the '14th Circuit Tela Verde', from the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change. The program concluded with a playful environmental education dynamic for the hospitalized children.
Among the enthusiastic participants was Samia Martins, 6 years old. The girl colored thematic drawings and participated in the 'Cleaning Fishing' which addressed the importance of not throwing trash on beaches and rivers; instead of fishing for fish, the children fished for trash to clean the environment, activities carried out in ward A of the hospitalization.
Samia's aunt and companion, Ana Cláudia Arruda, 33 years old, highlights positive outcomes from the action that contribute to the daily life of those experiencing hospitalization.
'It is an event that allows children to understand the importance of environmental preservation, generates quality of life, and simultaneously provides children with an activity that alleviates the stress of being hospitalized in a hospital. We are close to the realization of COP 30, and raising awareness among the population is valuable. The hospital's initiative is very good,' she emphasizes.
Service:
The Dr. Roberto Macedo Emergency Room is located on Avenida Augusto Montenegro, in Belém. The unit is managed by the Acqua Institute, in partnership with the State Department of Public Health (Sespa), and operates on a 24-hour emergency basis. The state PS is a reference in urgent and emergency care, with specialties such as general surgery, pediatric, vascular, thoracic, bucomaxillofacial, and neurosurgery.
Text by Pallmer Barros / Ascom PSRM
