Transforming healthcare systems and services into climate-resilient and low-carbon models

The AFD – Climate Action Accelerator research collaboration seeks to test an integrated approach of enabling AFD and Climate Action Accelerator partners to implement climate-resilient and low-carbon healthcare systems and services. The goal is that the targeted systems and services are capable of: 

1. Absorbing external shocks & ensuring business continuity and care; and  
2. Reducing carbon footprints whilst considering impact on other environmental parameters (e.g., water usage, plastic pollution). 

Our activities are aligned with WHO-developed CRESH models and targeting healthcare systems management teams, hospital directors and management teams of healthcare facilities & services.  

1. Design a toolbox and operational methodology aiming at reducing carbon footprint and climate vulnerability while strengthening the resilience of healthcare systems and services in a country.  
2. Co-lead a support approach to AFD partners in South Africa to test the usefulness of both the toolbox and methodology, and empower them to design a needs assessment, an adaptation plan and a corresponding investment plan.  
3. Document and disseminate this experimental development to prepare its scale-up to AFD and Climate Action Accelerator partners.  

As a first step in the research collaboration between AFD and Climate Action Accelerator, our team is developing a toolbox featuring selected tools that support healthcare system management teams, as well as hospital directors and management teams of healthcare facilities to increase their system’s resilience to climate risks and lower carbon emissions.  

The toolbox is developed in a co-design process, together with partners from the Future of Hospitals and Health Systems initiative and other relevant stakeholders (e.g., WHO and HCWH).

The Climate Action Accelerator intends to provide technical support and co-facilitate a technical dialogue led by the AFD in a pilot country. Key actions include sharing initiatives and tools for the ecological transformation of healthcare systems in similar context countries, building a diagnosis of their healthcare system (notably regarding carbon footprint and vulnerabilities), and supporting a transformation approach and strategy including an investment plan. Our team will document this experimental process to prepare its scale-up to AFD and Climate Action Accelerator partners in the next years. 

Cover photo: SJ Objio/Unsplash