When Hospitals Harm: A Call for Planetary Health

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Mr. Ebrahim, a medical student at Ras Al Khaimah Medical and Health Sciences University (RAKMHSU), UAE, soon entering his second year. He is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the topic, nor The European Sting’s one.

Hospitals are supposed to be sanctuaries—places we run to when the world outside becomes too dangerous. But what if I told you they’re quietly adding fuel to the very fire we’re seeking shelter from?

It sounds absurd. But here’s the truth: the healthcare sector is responsible for nearly 5% of global carbon emissions—more than aviation or shipping. Hospitals that stitch up trauma from heatwaves are themselves powered by fossil fuels that make those heatwaves worse. In trying to save lives, we’re also contributing to the crisis that’s endangering them.

And this contradiction isn’t just poetic—it’s deadly.

Operating rooms pump out potent greenhouse gases. Single-use plastics, once symbols of sterile safety, are now choking ecosystems. Even the humble inhaler, a lifeline for asthma patients, can have a carbon footprint equivalent to driving several kilometers. These aren’t isolated oversights—they are systemic blind spots in how we define “care.”

And when the climate fights back, healthcare is often the first to fall. Flooded clinics, overheated wards, interrupted supply chains. In regions like mine—the Middle East and beyond—where climate extremes are intensifying, health systems are dangerously underprepared.

But here’s what’s worse: we still don’t teach this.

Medical students aren’t learning about planetary health. We aren’t taught to calculate the carbon cost of a procedure, or how to prepare for climate migration, or how rising temperatures might worsen mental health. The curriculum hasn’t caught up with the reality we’re inheriting. And so, we graduate unprepared for the greatest health threat of our generation.

Yet there’s hope—and it starts with us.

Medical education needs a radical update. Sustainability shouldn’t be an elective—it should be a core competency. Hospitals need green procurement policies, clean energy, and sustainable waste systems. Research must prioritize low-carbon innovation. And students—especially those of us in the Global South—need to be part of this transition, because we’ll feel its effects first and hardest.

We’re not asking for miracles. We’re asking for medicine that heals without harming. For healthcare that doesn’t leave a carbon scar.

The Hippocratic oath says, “Do no harm.” It’s time we took that literally.

About the author

Ebrahim is a medical student at Ras Al Khaimah Medical and Health Sciences University (RAKMHSU), soon entering his second year. He is an active member of the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations (IFMSA) and passionate about the intersections of health, environmental sustainability, and global health equity. Ebrahim has participated in community initiatives focused on environmental cleanup and is eager to contribute to raising awareness about sustainable healthcare practices. With a growing interest in planetary health and its impact on vulnerable populations, he aims to combine his medical education with advocacy for a greener, more just healthcare system.