98 - Forbes McGain - Every decision has a footprint

The guest on this episode is Dr Forbes McGain, who speaks about what sustainability really means in healthcare, and why it's inseparable from good medicine. Drawing on his clinical work, research, and experience during COVID-19, Forbes explores how everyday ICU decisions carry environmental consequences, how "less is more" can benefit both patients and the planet, and how sustainability can align with patient safety, staff wellbeing, and cost. The conversation moves from bedside practice to hospital systems and innovation, while also reflecting on communication, mentorship, and what it means to be a thoughtful, humane intensivist.

Forbes is an intensivist, anaesthetist, researcher, and one of the leading voices in sustainable healthcare in Australia. He works clinically at Western Health in Melbourne and is also an Associate Professor of Critical Care and the Associate Dean of Sustainable Healthcare at the University of Melbourne.

In this episode, Forbes speaks about:

• How growing up on a farm shaped his connection to nature and medicine
• His pathway through anaesthesia and intensive care, and why he still practises both
• What sustainability really means in healthcare
• Why every decision made on an ICU ward round has an environmental footprint
• Thinking in life cycles rather than single-use devices
• Practical examples of sustainable practice at the bedside
• The principle of "less is more" in intensive care
• Micro, meso, and macro approaches to creating change
• The central role of nurses in the ICU
• Hospital energy use and the case for fully electric hospitals
• Innovation during COVID-19, including the McMonty isolation hood
• What sustains him personally, and advice for trainees interested in systems change

I hope you enjoy listening to this inspiring conversation with Associate Professor Forbes McGain.

Andrew Davies

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About the Mastering Intensive Care podcast: The podcast aims to inspire and empower you, through conversations about the human side of Intensive Care, to bring your best self to work, with a focus on compassion, collaboration and personal wellbeing.

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Relevant links

A/Prof Forbes McGain on LinkedIn

Healthcare Carbon Lab

Climate CATCH Lab

Doctors for the Environment Australia (DEA)

McMonty Hood

Mastering Intensive Care podcast

Mastering Intensive Care page on Facebook

Mastering Intensive Care at Life In The Fast Lane

Andrew Davies on X (Twitter): @andrewdavies66

Andrew Davies on Instagram: @andrewdavies66

Andrew Davies on LinkedIn

Email Andrew Davies

Audio Producer Chris Burke

Burke Sound & Media