Abstract
Climate change poses a major global health threat, with healthcare systems contributing substantially to global greenhouse gas emissions. Health professionals and students play an essential role in advancing sustainable practice, yet many lack the knowledge, skills,
and confidence needed to address the environmental impacts of healthcare. This study aims to co-design and evaluate a gamified e-resource that enhances pre-registration health profession students’ knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitudes towards healthcare decarbonisation, while encouraging sustainable behaviour change. A sequential explanatory design will be employed in three phases: (1) a scoping review of the literature; (2) four co-design
workshops with students (n = 20) followed by post-workshop focus groups using focused ethnography to explore co-design experiences; and (3) pre- and post-test questionnaires (n = 200) assessing knowledge, attitudes, self-efficacy, behaviours, willingness to act, and usability, followed by focus groups (n = 30) exploring behavioural changes after using the e-resource. The study will generate evidence on how a co-designed, gamified e-resources
influence student learning and engagement with healthcare decarbonisation. Findings will inform the integration of sustainability and decarbonisation principles within education and support efforts to equip future health professionals with the competencies required for
a low-carbon healthcare system.
and confidence needed to address the environmental impacts of healthcare. This study aims to co-design and evaluate a gamified e-resource that enhances pre-registration health profession students’ knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitudes towards healthcare decarbonisation, while encouraging sustainable behaviour change. A sequential explanatory design will be employed in three phases: (1) a scoping review of the literature; (2) four co-design
workshops with students (n = 20) followed by post-workshop focus groups using focused ethnography to explore co-design experiences; and (3) pre- and post-test questionnaires (n = 200) assessing knowledge, attitudes, self-efficacy, behaviours, willingness to act, and usability, followed by focus groups (n = 30) exploring behavioural changes after using the e-resource. The study will generate evidence on how a co-designed, gamified e-resources
influence student learning and engagement with healthcare decarbonisation. Findings will inform the integration of sustainability and decarbonisation principles within education and support efforts to equip future health professionals with the competencies required for
a low-carbon healthcare system.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 447 |
| Pages (from-to) | 1-18 |
| Number of pages | 18 |
| Journal | Nursing reports |
| Volume | 15 |
| Issue number | 12 |
| Early online date | 13 Dec 2025 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published (in print/issue) - 30 Dec 2025 |
Bibliographical note
© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.Data Access Statement
No data are available as this manuscript presents a study protocol.Funding
This research is funded by a Department for the Economy (DfE) Northern Ireland Postgraduate Studentship. DfE Studentship: DfE/McLaughlin-Borlace/Jan25.
Keywords
- healthcare decarbonisation
- sustainable healthcare
- climate change
- carbon emissions
- health professions education
- gamified learning
- digital education
- co-design
