Sustainable practice: Sustainable prescribing of iron replacement therapy

What you need to knowWhen oral iron is indicated for iron deficiency and iron deficiency anaemia, consider prescribing one tablet either daily or on alternate days instead of multiple tablets dailyConsider drug interactions, particularly from proton pump inhibitors, as a cause of iron deficiency; optimising iron absorption per tablet can lead to a reduction in dosing as well as the associated carbon footprint of medicationsAvoid checking ferritin levels if there is no clear indicationTreatment of iron deficiency (with or without anaemia) is an area where clinicians can implement updated recommendations on dose and frequency of iron supplementation that can have a clinical benefit for patients and also help mitigate environmental harms from healthcare practices.Why change is neededProduction and use of medications represent 12-25% of the greenhouse gas emissions from healthcare, the largest item in the supply chain with respect to carbon footprint.12 An accessible entry point for clinicians to reduce…
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