Getting Started: Carbon footprinting in hospitals
As climate change increases health risks and the demand for care, hospitals need holistic strategies that uphold patient safety, meet regulatory requirements, and reduce their environmental impact. Embedding sustainability practices into a hospital’s operations can enhance infection control, optimize waste management, reduce energy use, and lower emissions. All of this contributes to a healthier environment for patients, the workforce, and communities.
We acknowledge and thank Siew Yoong Chen as the author of this guide. She has volunteered her time and expertise towards helping the Geneva Sustainability Centre develop this content.
Why is a hospital’s carbon footprint unique?
Dominance of Scope 3 (supply chain) Emissions
Scope 3 includes emissions from pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, such as anaesthetic gases with high global warming potential, prostheses, and implants. It also covers medical equipment production and disposal, including single-use plastics and hazardous waste, as well as transportation of goods, staff, and patients. Hospitals can play a key role in reducing Scope 3 emissions:
Take a closer look at what your hospital buys and how supplies are used.
Question the need for certain items, review purchasing practices.
Choose reusable items instead of single-use ones whenever possible. Reduce plastic use and avoid food waste.
High energy consumption
Hospitals operate around the clock, requiring substantial energy for specialized areas like operating rooms and intensive care units, which consume more energy per square meter than general wards. The carbon footprint for the individual use of an MRI scanner can be up to 22.4 kg of CO2eq. This is roughly the same amount that is released by driving an average car for 91 km.
Medical equipment such as MRI machines, sterilizers, and lighting systems further add to the overall energy demand, making hospitals one of the most energy-intensive building types.
Waste generation and management
Healthcare facilities are among the top waste producers, generating large amounts of waste daily, with a significant portion classified as hazardous. Operating rooms are a major source of waste, including single-use surgical tools and packaging. The incineration of medical waste releases toxins and greenhouse gases, contributing to the healthcare sector’s environmental impact.
How to measure your hospital’s carbon footprint?
To calculate your organization’s footprint yourself, or to calculate the footprint of a specific activity in your hospital, you first need to know about emission factors (EFs). EFs are values that convert everyday business activities into GHG emissions. Think of EFs as a conversion table that tells you "this much of activity X creates this amount of GHGs”, for example:
- burning 1 gallon of gasoline produces 8.9 grams of CO₂
- using 1 kWh of electricity produces a specific amount of CO₂ (varies by location)
EFs are typically expressed as the weight of CO₂ per unit of activity (like per kWh, per mile driven, per ton of material) and vary depending on location and type of production process.
