Singapore’s NUH earns int’l certification for sustainable practices

The hospital piloted a recycling programme in three inpatient wards in May.

The National University Hospital (NUH) has received the Healthcare Sustainability Certification from the Joint Commission International (JCI), in collaboration with the International Hospital Federation’s Geneva Sustainability Centre.

The certification follows an assessment using the Geneva Sustainability Centre’s sustainability accelerator tool, which benchmarks sustainability maturity across environmental impact, health equity, and governance.

Amongst its recent initiatives, NUH has piloted a nurse-led “Sort-at-Source” recycling programme in three inpatient wards since May. Early results show a 47% increase in paper recycling and a more than 230% increase in plastic recycling.

The initiative is scheduled for full implementation across all NUH wards by the end of the year and is expected to recover up to 24,000 kg of recyclable waste annually.

According to Ron Lavater, CEO of the International Hospital Federation, NUH is also the first hospital in Southeast Asia to earn the certification.

“This certification reflects not only NUH’s commitment to environmental stewardship and resilient healthcare delivery but also the strength of the collaboration between JCI and the GSC,” Lavater added.