Singapore's health care sector carbon emissions 18% lower than expected
In a milestone for Southeast Asia's health care sector, Singapore's Ministry of Health (MOH), MOH Holdings Pte Ltd (MOHH), and the Center for Sustainable Medicine (CoSM) at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine) have released its first-ever comprehensive national emissions report for Singapore's health care sector, and the first comprehensive study across Asia.
The NUS-MOH study demonstrates that Singapore's health care system is 18% more sustainable than previously estimated, with the country delivering world-class health care at 20% lower carbon intensity than other advanced economies.
Launched at the first WHO-NUS hosted action forum for health ministries in the region working on sustainable health care, this report marks an important step in supporting Singapore's national commitment to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, as outlined in Singapore Green Plan 2030.
By mapping the carbon footprint of its entire health care system, Singapore joins a select group of countries leading the way in sustainable medicine, including the United Kingdom's National Health Service, Australia, France, Norway, and the Netherlands.
The report was launched by Mr. Tan Kiat How, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Health & Ministry of Digital Development and Information, at the inaugural Western Pacific Action Forum on Climate-Resilient and Sustainable Health Systems.
Mr. Tan emphasized that a whole-of-system approach to decarbonization is essential to securing and improving the highest standards of patient care for future generations.
He said, "This report marks a significant step forward in our sustainability journey. Importantly, this is also a call to action. Thus far, Singapore has been able to deliver world-class health care at a carbon intensity that is 20% below that of other advanced economies' health care systems.
"This is driven by several factors, such as negligible levels of refrigerant emissions despite our hot climate, and rapid reductions in anesthetic gas emissions in recent years through the dedication of our health care partners."
WHO's Director for Program Management at the Western Pacific Region, Dr. Susan Mercado, underscored the significance of Singapore's leadership for the region.
She said, "Sustainable health care is no longer a choice—it is a necessity. Singapore and the wider Western Pacific region face rising health demands, climate risks, and resource pressures. By investing in sustainable health care, we can strengthen resilience, lower emissions, and ensure every dollar spent delivers both better health outcomes and a healthier planet."
The report draws on data from all of Singapore's health care system, and is the result of a year-long effort by the MOH; MOHH and its subsidiaries NHG Health, National University Health System (NUHS), Singapore Health Services (SingHealth), and the Agency of Logistics and Procurement Services (ALPS); with the research led by CoSM.
Professor Nick Watts, Director of CoSM, said, "This report provides a firm analytical foundation that will allow Singapore's health care system to lead the world not only in high-quality care, but in the growing field of sustainable medicine. With data and contributions ranging from every hospital and every cluster through to national procurement and emergency services, the study's system-wide approach enables a whole-of-health care response to the health emergency of climate change."
The new study estimates the footprint of Singapore's health care system at 4.1 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (Mt CO₂e) per year—roughly the same as powering all 1.4 million households in Singapore for over a year. This provides crucial evidence of where the health care system's emissions lie, enabling health care leaders and professionals to target emissions where it matters most, while safeguarding and enhancing patient care.
Mapping out the emissions from Singapore's health care system from April 2023 to March 2024, the report identifies the following six major hotspots of emissions, and outlines health care decarbonization efforts and opportunities in the respective areas:
Medicines and medical products (32%)
These emissions mostly arise from the manufacture, transportation, and use of medicines and medical devices, such as thermometers, bandages, medical gowns, or wheelchairs, for the core delivery of health care.
Singapore has already achieved significant reductions in the use of desflurane (-45%) and nitrous oxide (-35%) in recent years, with some hospitals having virtually eliminated the use of desflurane and seen greater than 70% reductions in nitrous oxide use by replacing leaky manifolds with efficient canister systems.
Construction and maintenance of hospitals, clinics and other buildings (19%)
Building construction accounts for 12% of the footprint, driven by major projects such as Woodlands Health Campus and other hospital expansions, with maintenance of medical equipment and facility assets contributing a further 7%. The integration of sustainability into health care infrastructure projects positions
Singapore as a leader in green hospital design, as it is already prioritizing the use of low-carbon materials as well as embedding lifecycle carbon assessment and energy-efficient design into planning to ensure new buildings minimize emissions over their entire lifecycle, not just their construction.
Non-medical products and services and other capital expenditure (17%)
These include a wide range of general procurement and support services, such as laboratory equipment, laundry and cleaning services, catering, or business services. Emission reduction opportunities include prioritizing local, Singapore-based suppliers, low-carbon supply chains and applying emissions criteria in procurement policies—the implementation of which can be readily supported by Singapore's highly integrated procurement frameworks.
Emissions from hospitals, polyclinics and other buildings (14%)
These include electricity used for lighting, cooling, and powering medical and office equipment in hospitals and clinics, water usage and the transport and incineration of general and clinical waste. As Singapore's new public hospital buildings already follow stringent energy codes and green building standards, and other existing public hospitals are also undergoing upgrades, these energy savings will grow rapidly in the years ahead.
IT equipment and services (13%)
These include IT operations which involve the employment of energy-intensive data centers and servers to run Singapore's comprehensive and secure digital health services. Singapore's health care system is dedicated to improving the efficiency of its IT operations as part of its sustainability efforts through adoption of Building Construction Authority (BCA) Green Mark standards for upcoming data centers, advancement of cooling technologies, optimization of server utilization, and implementation of energy efficient hardware.
Transport emissions (5%)
This covers staff commuting, patient and visitor travel, as well as ambulance fleets, non-emergency transport in hospital vehicles, business travel, and the emissions caused by manufacturing vehicles owned by the health care system. Given Singapore's dense urban population and highly efficient public transport system, transport-related emissions in health care are already low as a proportion of our total footprint.
The report also highlights major achievements in Singapore's various health care institutions in recent years, showing that environmental stewardship and clinical excellence go hand-in-hand.
- Staff-led action and clinical innovation from the National University Hospital (NUH) nurse-led recycling scheme (230% increase in plastic recycling) to a 90% reduction in emissions achieved by anesthetists at Changi General Hospital (CGH) through switches to safer, cheaper, and greener anesthetic gases.
- A whole-of-system approach to sustainability such as Tan Tock Seng Hospital's medication packaging recycling effort that mobilized patients, caregivers, staff, students, and local companies.
- Leadership and recognition including the world's first MSc in Sustainable Health care at NUS Medicine and NUH becoming the first hospital globally to earn Joint Commission International's Health care Sustainability Certification.
More information:
Delivering Quality Care Sustainably in Singapore. www.moh.gov.sg/others/resource … ainably-in-singapore
Provided by National University of Singapore
