Healthcare

Australia's healthcare sector is a vast and growing industry, with annual revenues exceeding $200 billion dollars and employing over 2.3 million people, making it the nation's largest employer. The sector is incredibly diverse, offering a comprehensive range of services from public and private hospitals and general practitioners to specialised medical services, dental, allied health, and aged care facilities.

Key ESG issues

The healthcare sector is one of the most critical to the economy and society, and is facing a range of major ESG-related challenges. Ensuring equitable access to high-quality care, managing the environmental impact of medical waste and resource (including energy) consumption, managing cybersecurity threats and psychosocial risks, and adapting healthcare infrastructure and service delivery to cope with climate-related events such as increasingly severe storms, longer heatwaves, and projected increases in the frequency and threat level of zoonotic diseases are just some of the ESG issues the healthcare sector will need to overcome.