The story of the Sambhavna Clinic, a non-profit holistic health clinic in Bhopal, India, built to treat those injured by the Union Carbide toxic gas release in 1984. enlarge video
Healthy Hospitals, Healthy Planet, Healthy People: Addressing Climate Change in Health Care Settings
7 May 2009. 32 pages.
Summary
(Discussion Draft) This 32-page discussion draft produced by the World Health Organization and Health Care Without Harm says that the healthcare sector can lead the way against climate change. A radical overhaul of energy consumption in healthcare must take place if Europe is to meet a target of an 80% cut in carbon emissions by 2050. A new report by HCWH and the World Health Organization shows how the health sector can improve energy efficiency and adopt greener approaches to its services.
The paper begins to define a framework for analyzing and addressing the health sector's climate footprint — including identifying seven aspects of a climate-friendly hospital.
It also draws on a series of examples from around the world that demonstrate that the health sector is indeed already beginning to provide leadership in this most important area of concern to the global community. This paper is the first step in a WHO project in collaboration with Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) aimed at addressing the climate footprint of the health sector.
