Sepetis Anastasios, Rizos Fotios, Parlavantzas Ioannis, Zaza Paraskevi N, Nikolaou Ioannis E
Postgraduate Health and Social Care Management Program, Department of Business Administration, University of West Attica, Athens, 12244, Greece.
Business Administration Department, University of West Attica, Egaleo, Athens, 12244, Greece.
BMC Health Serv Res. 2025 Apr 9;25(1):522. doi: 10.1186/s12913-025-12542-x.
Climate change is considered one of the greatest threats to environmental sustainability, human health and social well-being worldwide. The healthcare sector is one of the main actors with a strong negative environmental footprint, being responsible for about 4% of global emissions, and is also considered one of the costliest sectors, with healthcare spending absorbing about 10% of global economic output. This article examines the environmental costs of the healthcare system in Greece, with a focus on public hospitals. The data analysis methodology was based on linear ordinary regression (OLS) models to calculate environmental costs related to energy consumption, waste management and water consumption. Data was collected through the Ministry of Health's platform (BI Health) and analyzed using Stata software. The main findings suggest that environmental costs are a significant part of total operating costs, particularly in university and specialist hospitals. Factors such as the number of beds, the existence of special units (e.g. ICU) and the use of natural gas have a significant impact on environmental costs. The study offers a mathematical model for predicting environmental costs, which can help hospital administrators to make decisions about sustainable practices. This model could provide an important opportunity for practical application to make targeted decisions such as investing in sustainable technologies, improving energy efficiency and enhancing waste management, leading to cost-effective and environmentally sustainable practices.
气候变化被认为是全球环境可持续性、人类健康和社会福祉面临的最大威胁之一。医疗保健部门是具有强大负面环境足迹的主要行为主体之一，约占全球排放量的4%，同时也被认为是成本最高的部门之一，医疗保健支出占全球经济产出的10%左右。本文研究了希腊医疗保健系统的环境成本，重点是公立医院。数据分析方法基于线性普通回归（OLS）模型，以计算与能源消耗、废物管理和用水相关的环境成本。数据通过卫生部的平台（BI Health）收集，并使用Stata软件进行分析。主要研究结果表明，环境成本是总运营成本的重要组成部分，特别是在大学医院和专科医院。病床数量、特殊科室（如重症监护室）的存在以及天然气的使用等因素对环境成本有重大影响。该研究提供了一个预测环境成本的数学模型，可帮助医院管理人员做出关于可持续做法的决策。该模型可为实际应用提供重要机会，以便做出有针对性的决策，如投资可持续技术、提高能源效率和加强废物管理，从而实现具有成本效益和环境可持续性的做法。
