Climate, health equity, and the built environment: A video on sustainable healthcare, Austria
Globally, the healthcare sector today is responsible for 4.6% of global net emissions, contributing directly to the effects of climate change that are harming public health and healthcare systems. Hospitals have the highest energy intensity of all publicly funded buildings and emit 2.5 times more greenhouse gases than commercial buildings.
In Austria, the healthcare sector accounts for 6.7% of the national carbon footprint. The Barmherzige Brüder Österreich's, in Vienna, environmental goal is to halve its CO2 emissions by 2025. Through various efforts from energy supply to food, building design to recycling efforts, this was already almost achieved in 2022.
"If buildings are designed to be climate-friendly and sustainable, then that means also a better climate in the rooms. Patients recover faster, staff have a better working environment, the air quality improves, which also improves the health."
Ruperta Lichtenecker
Head of Competence Centre for Climate and Health, Austria
EuroHealthNet and the Austrian National Health Institute visited the hospital to learn more about how different changes can be adopted to create a healthier environment for patients and healthcare workers alike.
This video is part of a series on 'Climate, health equity, and the built environment', with support from the European Climate Foundation. Check out our other video on managing heatwaves in schools in Spain. Upcoming videos in this series will focus on a ban on solid fuel use in Ireland to improve air quality, and reducing energy poverty in Bulgaria.
The video series is part of EuroHealthNet's call for an EU Strategy on Climate and Health.
Related resources
The future of public health in Europe – EuroHealthNet Foresight report
