The opportunity
Healthy people need a healthy planet.
However, there is a negative cycle. When people live with preventable diseases this puts extra pressure on health systems and drives up the environmental footprint of healthcare. Climate change and nature loss are also worsening the global burden of disease.
We are working to break this cycle. Through innovation to prevent and alter disease trajectories, we can not only alleviate the burden on healthcare systems, but also reduce the associated carbon emissions, waste, and water consumption.
At the same time, by harnessing cutting-edge science and technology, we can minimise the climate and nature impacts of the treatments that patients need.
This all helps create more sustainable healthcare systems that are better for patients and the planet.
Product sustainability
We’re working to deliver more sustainable medicines and vaccines by integrating climate and nature impacts into our product development processes, as part of our plan to achieve our ambitious company goals on both climate and nature.
This involves designing our new products with sustainability in mind and staying ahead of new sustainability challenges as our pipeline and portfolio evolve. Since the beginning of 2024 we now create Sustainable Design Plans for all newly developed or acquired medicines. These help to ensure we understand the environmental impact of each product, and that we have a plan to reduce these impacts across the product lifecycle.
Read our approach to product sustainability
Reducing the environmental impact of our medicines and vaccines (PDF, 133.8KB)
We are also implementing leading practices throughout our supply chain, manufacturing, and packaging to minimise the impact of our current medicines and vaccines. For GSK, the scale of opportunity is huge – in 2023, we successfully delivered over 500 million vaccine doses and 1.8 billion packs of medicines globally, produced in our 37 manufacturing sites with the support of over 20,000 suppliers.
By leveraging our scientific expertise, technology, and talent, we aim to make our product development more resilient and our processes more efficient, helping to ensure ongoing access to these vital healthcare solutions.
Care model sustainability
We believe that investing in disease prevention is beneficial for patients, communities, health systems and the planet.
By focusing on prevention and changing the course of diseases, we can reduce hospitalisations, staff and patient travel and the need for intensive procedures. This can lessen the carbon emissions, waste, and water usage associated with healthcare, helping health systems to achieve their climate targets.1
Through the development and supply of vaccines, we contribute to preventing diseases such as malaria and RSV. Emerging data highlights the reduced environmental impact of vaccination compared to disease treatment. Additionally, our innovation in longer-acting medicines for respiratory diseases and HIV not only improves patient outcomes but can also reduce the environmental impact of patient care.2
These advancements open up new opportunities for healthcare systems to support patients, manage treatment pathways, and invest in keeping people well while minimising environmental impacts.
Improving sustainability in healthcare is complex, involving collaboration between industry, regulators, payers, healthcare professionals, and patients. We need to collectively ensure the development, uptake, and responsible use of sustainable medicines and vaccines, without compromising efficacy, safety and access.
While the challenges are undeniable, progress is already underway. National governments and health systems are setting climate targets, biodiversity action plans are being formulated, and sustainability criteria are being integrated into health decision-making.
We have identified four immediate priorities to help pave the way towards a shared sustainable future for healthcare. We want to help accelerate these transformations, bring our own learning to the table and expand partnerships with stakeholders to drive change.
Building a common approach to measuring the climate and nature impacts of patient care.
We need a shared understanding of the environmental footprint of healthcare that supports patient access to the treatments and care they need.
This means considering both product level factors (including carbon, water, packaging and waste) which can be captured through a product Life Cycle Assessments (LCA); and care pathway factors, such as frequency and location of treatment and impact on patient outcomes which may lead to avoided emissions elsewhere in the healthcare system, for example by reducing hospitalisation.
Recognising the added value of medicines and vaccines that have a sustainability benefit.
The allocation of health budgets and decisions made to recognise and promote the value of sustainability will determine our collective ability to innovate and scale new solutions.
Medicines and vaccines are currently evaluated for their impact on patient outcomes and cost. But for products with a potential for having a high environmental impact, like metered dose inhalers (MDIs), systems also need to consider how to recognise any environmental benefits which may arise from the choice of medicine used or the impact it has on the carbon footprint of the patient care pathway.
Regulatory approval of more sustainable healthcare solutions.
We need fast and safe development and regulatory approval to get more sustainable innovations to patients.
Many changes to pharmaceutical products, processes and packaging require approval from medicines regulators. For example, transitioning to a lower global warming potential propellant in inhalers, switching to electronic patient information instead of paper leaflets and removing PVC from packaging to increase recyclability. Alignment and harmonisation across regulators would help to overcome challenges due the current need for separate reviews and approvals from multiple regulatory authorities globally.
Good practice on health system promotion of sustainable technologies and treatment approaches.
Achieving sustainability benefits can depend on healthcare professional and patient uptake. We can make better use of the tools already at our disposal to optimise patient care and improve control of symptoms.
For example, in respiratory disease, optimising patients’ maintenance therapy to improve control of symptoms and reduce the need for higher carbon rescue/reliever medications and encouraging the use of existing low carbon treatment options, such as dry powder inhalers (DPIs), where clinically appropriate.
