The Environmental Dimension in the Training of Health Professionals: Theoretical Systematization and Bibliometric Analysis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.62697/rmiie.v5i3.412Keywords:
Climate change, professional competencies, socio-environmental determinants, planetary healthAbstract
The intensification of risks associated with climate change, pollution, biodiversity loss, and socio-environmental inequalities presents an unavoidable challenge to higher education in health: to incorporate the environmental dimension holistically and across all disciplines. This article aimed to systematize the scientific evidence supporting this integration from the perspectives of planetary health, One Health, and socio-environmental determinants. A mixed-methods approach was used, combining a theoretical systematization guided by PRISMA 2020 with a bibliometric analysis of Scopus records processed using VOSviewer 1.6.20 software. Nineteen studies were included for qualitative synthesis, and 234 records were used for data and metadata analysis. The results showed a sustained increase in publications since 2022, a predominance of reviews and descriptive studies, and a thematic concentration on planetary health, One Health, sustainability, climate change, and curriculum development. The bibliometric analysis identified five clusters of keyword co-occurrence: public health and environmental epidemiology, curriculum development, climate change and sustainability, human-animal-environment interface, and inequality and social justice. It concludes that there is a consensus on the need to mainstream these approaches into health curricula, although further empirical evidence needs to be strengthened and Latin American experiences explored in greater depth.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Luz María Contreras-Velázquez, Mireya Pérez-Rodríguez, Lissete Zambrano-Sanguinetti
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