(TheLastPatriotNews.com) – In a new demonstration of leftist ideology’s aggressive attack on US higher education, a high-profile doctor has argued, alongside other Michigan clinicians and medical students, that courses on “climate change” should be compulsory in the education of future medical professionals.
Dr. DelBuono, who is also the founder and president of Michigan Clinicians for Climate Action, advocates for the integration of climate education in professional medical training, The College Fix reports.
“My personal opinion is that it should be mandatory. Climate change has been politicized, but it is not a political issue… It would be irresponsible to not prepare future practitioners for the realities they will be facing,” she told The Fix.
DelBuono emphasizes the current and escalating health crises driven by “Fossil fuels pollution and climate change,” noting that tackling these issues aligns with improving public health and reducing healthcare costs.
She highlights the necessity for medical students to understand and identify the health impacts of climate phenomena such as “extreme heat and humidity.”
The uptake of climate change content in medical curricula is on the rise, as revealed by a survey conducted by the Association of American Medical Colleges.
Between 2019 and 2021, the proportion of medical schools with mandatory climate change courses jumped from 27 percent to 55 percent.
Despite the increase, Dr. DelBuono acknowledges resistance to this curriculum enhancement, including from within the medical community, where concerns are voiced about the feasibility of adding more content to an already extensive syllabus.
The initiative has seen participation from students at prominent Michigan institutions, such as the University of Michigan and Michigan State University, reports Bridge Michigan.
Conversely, Mark Perry, a seasoned economist and former faculty member at the University of Michigan Flint, critiques the inclusion of mandatory climate change education in medical curricula.
Representing Do No Harm as a senior fellow, Perry conveyed to The Fix, “any curriculum relating to climate change in medical schools should definitely be optional, and not required, because it will likely be ideologically-biased and not balanced, and also especially if coverage of what becomes climate hysteria replaces science-based curriculum in medical schools.”
He advocates for a balanced approach that also acknowledges potential benefits of climate change, such as increased forest growth and crop yields, which he suggests could have positive health implications.
Perry also points out the decline in climate-related deaths by 97% over the past century, attributing this to advances in technology and forecasting, a fact he believes is overlooked due to media focus on negative aspects of climate change.
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