Eco-pharma dilemma: Navigating environmental sustainability trade-offs within the lifecycle of pharmaceuticals – A comment

Caroline T.A. Moermond; Neele Puhlmann; Lowik Pieters; Avtar Matharu; Lieselot Boone; Maarten Dobbelaere; Héloïse Proquin; Klaus Kümmerer; Ad M.J. Ragas; Rodrigo Vidaurre; Bastiaan Venhuis; Delphine De Smedt

doi:10.1016/j.scp.2024.101893

Eco-pharma dilemma: Navigating environmental sustainability trade-offs within the lifecycle of pharmaceuticals – A comment

Caroline T.A. Moermond^*, Neele Puhlmann, Lowik Pieters, Avtar Matharu, Lieselot Boone, Maarten Dobbelaere, Héloïse Proquin, Klaus Kümmerer, Ad M.J. Ragas, Rodrigo Vidaurre, Bastiaan Venhuis, Delphine De Smedt

^*Corresponding author for this work

Chemistry

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

An ideal pharmaceutical treatment is both safe and effective for patients. However, from a sustainability perspective, it also needs to be cost-effective, energy- and resource-efficient, and not have a negative impact on the environment. When striving towards environmentally sustainable healthcare, trade-offs between environmental sustainability and other aspects play a multi-faceted role in decision-making along the whole life cycle of a pharmaceutical, from design to end-of-life. When making environment-driven choices, stakeholders in this life cycle (e.g., procurers, prescribers) may not be aware of all consequences (environmental, social, or economic), which complicates decision-making processes. Information at hand may be ambiguous or unknown due to data gaps, complex and interdependent local, national and global healthcare systems, and unknown future developments. Thus, trade-offs may happen at temporal or spatial scales outside of the daily practice of stakeholders. This commentary aims to initiate a discussion on these trade-offs, the need for a holistic view, the use of multi-criteria decision-making tools, and clear environmental sustainability guidelines.

Original language	English
Article number	101893
Number of pages	10
Journal	Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy
Volume	43
Early online date	24 Dec 2024
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scp.2024.101893
Publication status	Published - Feb 2025

Bibliographical note

Keywords

Environmental impact
Holistic assessment
life cycle
Pharmaceutical treatment
Pharmaceuticals
Stakeholders
Sustainability

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Moermond, C. T. A., Puhlmann, N., Pieters, L., Matharu, A., Boone, L., Dobbelaere, M., Proquin, H., Kümmerer, K., Ragas, A. M. J., Vidaurre, R., Venhuis, B., & De Smedt, D. (2025). Eco-pharma dilemma: Navigating environmental sustainability trade-offs within the lifecycle of pharmaceuticals – A comment. Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy, 43, Article 101893. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scp.2024.101893

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abstract = "An ideal pharmaceutical treatment is both safe and effective for patients. However, from a sustainability perspective, it also needs to be cost-effective, energy- and resource-efficient, and not have a negative impact on the environment. When striving towards environmentally sustainable healthcare, trade-offs between environmental sustainability and other aspects play a multi-faceted role in decision-making along the whole life cycle of a pharmaceutical, from design to end-of-life. When making environment-driven choices, stakeholders in this life cycle (e.g., procurers, prescribers) may not be aware of all consequences (environmental, social, or economic), which complicates decision-making processes. Information at hand may be ambiguous or unknown due to data gaps, complex and interdependent local, national and global healthcare systems, and unknown future developments. Thus, trade-offs may happen at temporal or spatial scales outside of the daily practice of stakeholders. This commentary aims to initiate a discussion on these trade-offs, the need for a holistic view, the use of multi-criteria decision-making tools, and clear environmental sustainability guidelines.",

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Moermond, CTA, Puhlmann, N, Pieters, L, Matharu, A, Boone, L, Dobbelaere, M, Proquin, H, Kümmerer, K, Ragas, AMJ, Vidaurre, R, Venhuis, B & De Smedt, D 2025, 'Eco-pharma dilemma: Navigating environmental sustainability trade-offs within the lifecycle of pharmaceuticals – A comment', Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy, vol. 43, 101893. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scp.2024.101893

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AU - De Smedt, Delphine

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AB - An ideal pharmaceutical treatment is both safe and effective for patients. However, from a sustainability perspective, it also needs to be cost-effective, energy- and resource-efficient, and not have a negative impact on the environment. When striving towards environmentally sustainable healthcare, trade-offs between environmental sustainability and other aspects play a multi-faceted role in decision-making along the whole life cycle of a pharmaceutical, from design to end-of-life. When making environment-driven choices, stakeholders in this life cycle (e.g., procurers, prescribers) may not be aware of all consequences (environmental, social, or economic), which complicates decision-making processes. Information at hand may be ambiguous or unknown due to data gaps, complex and interdependent local, national and global healthcare systems, and unknown future developments. Thus, trade-offs may happen at temporal or spatial scales outside of the daily practice of stakeholders. This commentary aims to initiate a discussion on these trade-offs, the need for a holistic view, the use of multi-criteria decision-making tools, and clear environmental sustainability guidelines.

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KW - life cycle

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Eco-pharma dilemma: Navigating environmental sustainability trade-offs within the lifecycle of pharmaceuticals – A comment

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

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