As doctors, we’re trained to treat the body, calm the mind and perhaps, comfort the soul, but what happens when healing extends beyond the hospital or clinic walls? Around the world, and across Australia, doctors are stepping up as advocates, organisers and changemakers, using their skills and credibility to tackle everything from health inequity in First Nations communities to climate resilience, refugee health and mental health reform. These clinicians are showing us what it means to wield our medical training for wider social impact. But advocacy isn’t just for “other” doctors – it’s for all of us.
In this fortnightly series, we’ll spotlight organisations that are led by or involve doctors who are rewriting the playbook on what it means to care. Whether you’re in a remote town or a major city, on Country or in Canberra, we invite you to discover pathways to engagement that align with your values and skills.
Each profile will share concrete ways to support these organisations, get involved directly, or simply stay informed. Your contribution — whether time, expertise, or awareness — might create ripple effects of healing across communities, the nation, even across the globe!
“More of us medical women need to stand up, show up, and lead the way in making change. Our firsthand experience with healthcare gaps position us to be particularly effective changemakers” – Dr. Brenda Masters, President, AFMW
In the second instalment of this series (instalment one focused on Médecins Sans Frontières), we take a look at Doctors for the Environment Australia (DEA).
Climate and Health: An Urgent Call to Action
As medical professionals, we’re intimately familiar with the principle ‘first, do no harm’. But what happens when the very systems designed to heal – our hospitals, clinics and pharmaceuticals – also contribute significantly to environmental harm? Doctors for the Environment Australia (DEA) brings together medical voices to tackle this paradox head-on, advocating for planetary health as essential to human health.
Climate change is the greatest health challenge of our time. Globally, communities are experiencing unprecedented risks to their health, wellbeing and survival due to the rapidly accelerating climate crisis [1]. In Australia, the signs are stark: rising temperatures, catastrophic bushfires, droughts and extreme weather events. Vulnerable populations, including children, older adults, First Nations and culturally and linguistically diverse communities, bear the brunt. Meanwhile, the healthcare sector itself accounts for over 7% of Australia’s total carbon emissions, with hospitals contributing nearly half of that footprint [2].
Who Are Doctors for the Environment Australia (DEA)?
DEA emerged as the Australian branch of the International Society of Doctors for the Environment (ISDE). Following a powerful call to action in the Medical Journal of Australia in 1999, and officially incorporated in 2001, DEA prioritised climate change as its primary advocacy focus from its inception.
DEA’s vision, “Healthy Planet, Healthy People”, and its purpose, “Protecting health through care of the environment,” drive its non-partisan, not-for-profit advocacy. With a presence in every state and Territory, it leverages trusted medical expertise to highlight how environmental protection directly safeguards human health.
In 2010, DEA was a lead organisation in the establishment of the Climate and Health Alliance (CAHA), a now internationally-recognised coalition of over 100 health and medical groups, academic and research institutions, health care service providers and unions that drives a powerful health sector-directed movement for climate action and sustainable healthcare.
DEA Advocacy Priorities
DEA’s advocacy encompasses a range of crucial policy areas:
- Ending fossil fuel investments: Australia, as a major coal and gas exporter, must assume responsibility by ending public coal, oil and gas subsidies and investing in renewable energy sources like wind and solar, which are clean, safe, cost-effective solutions.
- Rejecting nuclear power: Due to its high cost, environmental and health risks, and slow implementation, nuclear power distracts from immediate renewable solutions.
- Reducing healthcare sector emissions: Advocating for sustainable healthcare practices that lower emissions while improving health outcomes and financial efficiency.
- Implementing a robust National Health and Climate Strategy: Ensuring the Australian health system is resilient and responsive to climate-induced challenges.
- Protecting biodiversity: Recognising that human health and the health of our natural world are inseparable, DEA campaigns for ending native forest logging and enhancing protection of natural habitats.
DEA in Action
DEA operates through a dedicated volunteer network of doctors who utilise their medical credibility to influence political decision-making, public opinion and policy development.
Their impactful strategies include:
- Strong political advocacy and campaigning
- Education and awareness-building events
- Strategic media engagement
- Collaborations with medical peers and institutions (including AFMW!)
- Creating educational and policy documents that convert scientific data into actionable insights
DEA has also significantly shaped medical education curricula and healthcare standards across Australia, embedding climate awareness and sustainability within healthcare practices.
Recent Initiatives
DEA’s recent operations include significant legal advocacy, such as their challenge against the approval of Woodside’s Scarborough gas project due to its detrimental impact on climate and public health. In addition, their “Put Our Health First” campaign during the recent federal election emphasised electing leaders committed to proactive climate policies to safeguard community health.
What Can I Do?
There are several meaningful ways to engage with DEA, regardless of your career stage or availability:
- Become a member: DEA welcomes doctors and medical students from all over Australia
- Special Interest Groups: Engage deeply with specific issues like air pollution, biodiversity, or diet and agriculture.
- Amplify their message: Follow and engage with DEA’s channels on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter/X and BlueSky.
- Raise awareness: Get your non-medical friends and colleagues to join the DEA community as a Friend of DEA.
- Attend the iDEA conference: the DEA trademark conference where expert speakers and thought leaders convene to address the critical challenges of safeguarding health in an evolving environment.
- Attend DEA events: DEA holds forums across the country educating communities on how climate impacts health.
- Support financially: Donations help sustain DEA’s work.
- Educate yourself and others: DEA has wide-ranging resources for medical education including fact sheets and reports, including the GreenCollege
Your Reflection
Consider this: How does your daily medical practice contribute to carbon emissions, and what immediate steps could you take tomorrow to reduce your environmental impact?
References:
The 2024 report of the Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: facing record-breaking threats from delayed action. Romanello, Marina et al. The Lancet, Volume 404, Issue 10465, 1847 – 1896.
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(24)01822-1/abstract
The carbon footprint of Australian health care. Malik, Arunima et al. The Lancet Planetary Health, Volume 2, Issue 1, e27 – e35
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-51961730180-8/fulltext
Photo Credit:
1. Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash
2. Photo from the DEA website
Dr Madhura Naidu is an Intensive Care Registrar and trainee with the College of Intensive Care Medicine with over a decade of multidisciplinary clinical experience spanning ICU, anaesthesia, surgery and palliative care. She brings a comprehensive clinical skillset and a systems-based perspective to critical care, grounded in evidence-based, compassionate and patient-centred practice.
She is particularly passionate about the strategic integration of AI and digital health in medicine as tools to streamline workflows, empower clinicians, and improve patient outcomes in real-world settings.
Beyond the bedside, Madhura is an intersectional feminist and long-time advocate for gender equity and clinician wellbeing. She currently serves as Vice-President of the Australian Federation of Medical Women (AFMW) — the only national organisation exclusively representing the women and non-binary medical workforce — following a three-year tenure as President of the Victorian Medical Women’s Society.
A lifelong learner, Madhura is driven by adaptability, innovation, and building efficient, future-focused solutions across clinical, organisational and digital health settings.
