Australia’s Healthcare Sustainability and Resilience Module
Categories: Action Line 2: Evidence-based policy strategy and capacity building, Climate-smart workforce, Climate-transformative leadership and governance
Country: Australia
Organizations: Interim Australian Centre for Disease Control, Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing
The intervention
The Healthcare Sustainability and Resilience Module, developed by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, aims to integrate environmental sustainability and climate resilience into healthcare delivery and governance. Published in 2025, the Module provides a maturity-scale assessment for organisations to evaluate and improve sustainability practices across governance, evidence-based care, measurement, training, and communication. Designed to fit seamlessly within existing accreditation frameworks, it helps health services embed sustainability into safety and quality systems. The Module applies across acute, primary, community, and mental health services, supporting Australia’s broader transition to a climate-resilient, high-quality, and net zero health system.
Success factors
The Module’s success lies in its integration within existing safety and quality governance systems, avoiding duplication and ensuring ease of adoption. Its co-design and pilot process - conducted with health service organisations, professional bodies, and sector stakeholders - ensured the framework’s practicality and relevance. The approach supports phased implementation through actionable steps and supporting resources, enhancing feasibility across diverse care settings. Its setting-agnostic design makes it adaptable to a range of healthcare environments, while its collaborative development process strengthened stakeholder buy-in and alignment with national standards. This strategic alignment ensures the Module is both operationally feasible and policy-relevant, facilitating wide-scale adoption.
Recommendations
For replication, similar modules should align with existing accreditation and governance systems to enable seamless integration. Early co-design with end-users, health service organisations, and professional bodies is vital to ensure the standards reflect real-world challenges. Embedding equity considerations - particularly for communities facing health disparities - enhances inclusivity and impact. Standards should align with national health policy directions to maintain legitimacy and coherence across systems. Finally, frameworks must remain iterative, incorporating stakeholder feedback and evidence from monitoring and evaluation to ensure continuous improvement. This ensures sustainability and resilience modules remain adaptable, scalable, and relevant as climate-health risks evolve across different contexts.
Click here to return to the Belém Health Action Library