Hospitals in the Philippines are being encouraged to “go green” — become environment-friendly as they are people-friendly. But high costs are discouraging a lot of hospitals.
More and more Asian hospitals are going green. Advocate Gary Cohen says the health sector should be at the forefront of climate change mitigation. “They’re large users of chemicals, large users of energy. And they also have a very large climate footprint… They’re the best positioned to lead this effort around climate change,” Says Cohen.
Philippine hospitals are encouraged to adopt environment-friendly practices. But the head of the Philippine Hospital Association says going green is never easy. Dr. Bu Castro, the PH Hospital Association President described, “The most regulated establishment in the Philippines is the hospital… Hospitals in the Philippines want to go green. Of course, we’re just going to be asked always, what is the cost?”
Environmental Management head Juan Miguel Cuna says the costs are small compared to the long-term gains, “Most green-minded establishments, they look at the long-term projection. We spend now, change your air-conditioner, refrigeration to more energy-efficient appliances. But then if you compute the electricity consumption that you will have, you will be saving in the end.
Advocates say the core mission of hospitals is healing, and this healing mission should extend to the environment.
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