ASA committee chair discusses reducing health care’s carbon footprint in TIME Magazine

Seema Gandhi, MD, FASA, chair of ASA’s Committee on Environmental Health, was quoted in the article, which looked at the impactful work anesthesiologists are doing in the operating room to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. “Desflurane is hundreds of times worse than the other alternatives, and it’s more expensive,” said Dr. Gandhi. “There are no commiserate benefits of using desflurane, eliminating it is absolutely a win-win.”

The piece noted guidance published last year that included actionable steps that can be taken to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, such as avoiding desflurane and nitrous oxide, and ASA’s new statement on the use of low gas flows for sevoflurane was also cited.