Circular medicine. a paradigm of sustainability and resilience in education and professional development

ABSTRACT

Circular economy is a model of economic, social and environmental production and consumption, aimed to build a sustainable society in tune with the available resources. In the Brundtland Report, (1987, United Nations) sustainability it is defined as an approach focused on "meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." The European Medical Association (EMA), that has currently more than 50 000 members, is involved in the advancement of health, pursuing educational and professional goals addressed to the quality of environment, lifestyle and civil society through a circular medicine approach. This is a comprehensive strategy, integrating best medical practice, bioinformatics and molecular biology with economy, artificial intelligence and machine learning. Circular Medicine is the resilient framework linking all these topics with circular economy methods. Innovative possibilities of circular medicine are many it is a comprehensive paradigm shift, countering a non-medicine based on simplistic algorithms with guidelines of insufficient effectiveness, reliability and generalizability, often passed off as innovative Artificial-Intelligence approaches. We launched in 2020 a still ongoing survey aimed at the dissemination of information and at a greater sensitivity of all our members and followers on these topics, striving to build circular medicine in the real-world. This position document is based on its preliminary results: 1. Studying and investigating the links among health, climate change, biodiversity, circular economy, robust Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning support are goals and needed practice suitable to be pursued by EMA and other medical and scientific associations. Circular economy will be fruitfully used in health facilities, including hospitals, with health professionals and life science researchers acting also in the role of influencers and opinion leaders. 2. The interventions based on epidemiology, environmental sciences, best practice in medicine, sustainable technologies and molecular biology, the pillars of a potential framework of circular medicine, need a robust bioinformatics and Artificial Intelligence support. 3. Academic curricula and health professionals CME courses should provide stronger digital knowledge, reliable procedures trainings and expertise along these lines. Daily routine of clinical observation and participatory dialogue are key elements for the progress toward a culture, practice and accomplishments of circular economy and medicine. 4. Molecular biology, still the most innovative field of medical and life science, has a role for strengthening the pathways of the circular economy, as a reliable and resilient basis of "circular medicine." 5. The lessons of COVID19, the ongoing battles for healthier lifestyles dealing with nutrition, exercise and against alcohol and cigarette smoking, and the concept of smart cities are some of the cornerstones of the proposed strategy for a real-world circular medicine. Debunking interventions against the misuse of scientific and medical are means for the development of circular economy and medicine. Effective roadmaps, guidelines and grids for recognizing and counteracting the overlap of bullying, imposter's fear, insufficient expertise and knowledge, fake assertions and evaluations are actively developed by EMA's ad-hoc workshops. AI knowledge and skills should be implemented within innovative molecular biology and medical best-practice academic-CME curricula.Copyright © 2023 The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.