From Code Green to Net Zero: The Road to Eco-Conscious Hospitals

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Ms. Rayna Ying Zhi Ling, a medical student at Cardiff University, United Kingdom. She 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.

Healthcare exists to protect and enhance human life. Yet, it often harms the very systems that sustain life – damaging the air we breathe, the water we drink and the climate we depend on. We rarely pause to ask: can healthcare be healing for both people and the planet?

The environmental footprint of healthcare is significant. Globally, the sector accounts for nearly 5% of total greenhouse gas emissions, surpassing even the aviation industry in many industralised countries (1). In the UK, the National Health Service alone contributes to around 6.3% of national emissions (2). As climate change intensifies, it increases the burden on healthcare systems already under strain. Heatwaves, floods, food insecurity and infectious diseases threaten to overwhelm the very institutions contributing to these challenges.

The World Health Organisation projects that climate change will cause an additional 250,000 deaths annually between 2030 and 2050, due to malnutrition, heat stress, malaria and diarrhoeal disease (3). In advancing fields like medicine, effectiveness often takes precedence over sustainability. This is evident in energy-intensive hospital infrastructure, the widespread use of single-use plastics and pharmaceuticals – practices that, while essential in many contexts, come at an environmental cost. 

As a medical student, I have been rigorously trained in sterility, infection control and patient safety. However, there is a surprising silence in our curriculum when it comes to sustainability and the environmental impact of clinical practices. How often do we question whether each intervention is not only clinically safe and effective, but also environmentally responsible? Can we justify the carbon cost of every glove, every prescription, every test?

Rather than criticism, this begins with recognition. Understanding the environmental cost of our actions empowers us to make more informed choices. Conscious awareness is not a burden but a tool for change.

The UK’s commitment to becoming the world’s first net zero national health service by 2045 is bold and necessary, but policy alone is not enough. Real transformation demands action at every level – from hospital management to bedside clinicians. Practical measures include reducing medical waste, using energy-efficient technologies in operating theatres, increasing the use of reusables, and prescribing more thoughtfully. Healthcare professionals can advocate for environmental education, among peers and patients, to foster eco-conscious health behaviours.

In lower-income settings, the pressure is urgent. Climate change disproportionately affects regions with fragile health systems, where the capacity to respond is limited. Hospitals in these areas often struggle with both resource scarcity and climate vulnerability – a dangerous combination. Here, sustainability is not a choice, it is a necessity for survival. As global citizens, we must respond with solidarity, not complacency. 

Healthcare has always been about doing no harm. Extending this ethic to include environmental stewardship is not only morally sound, but also a medical imperative.

If we are to serve future generations, we must build systems that heal without harming. Greener hospitals are not a luxury. They are a critical step in ensuring that healthcare can continue to do what it always meant to do: protect life – in every form it takes.

References:

1. https://global.noharm.org/resources/health-care-climate-footprint-report
2. https://www.england.nhs.uk/greenernhs/ 
3. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/climate-change-and-health 
4. https://www.who.int/health-topics/climate-change#tab=tab_1 
5. https://redcross.eu/uploads/files/Latest%20News/World%20Disasters%20Report%202020/World%20Disasters%20Report%202020%20-%20Executive%20Summary.pdf 
6. Romanello M, Napoli Cd, Green C, Kennard H, Lampard P, Scamman D, et al. The 2023 report of the <em>Lancet</em> Countdown on health and climate change: the imperative for a health-centred response in a world facing irreversible harms. The Lancet. 2023;402(10419):2346-94.  

About the author

Rayna Ying Zhi Ling is a medical student at Cardiff University, United Kingdom. She is an active member of the International Federation of Medical Students’ Association (IFMSA), where she has served on the International Team in the Standing Committee on Professional Exchange (SCOPE), affiliated to Students for Global Health UK, reflecting her commitment to global health equity, medical education and sustainable healthcare systems.