▲ An Asan Medical Center staff member inspects a waste heat recovery system installed to improve energy efficiency.

Asan Medical Center has received the highest rating of five leaves in the “World’s Greenest Hospitals 2026” evaluation recently announced by Newsweek, a leading U.S. news magazine. It was also selected as one of only 24 hospitals worldwide recognized for “Sustainable Infrastructure.”

The recognition reflects international acknowledgment of Asan Medical Center’s ESG efforts across its operations as part of its commitment to environmentally responsible management.

For the first time this year, Newsweek evaluated approximately 6,000 hospitals worldwide based on their environmental management and sustainability performance, selecting 250 hospitals in 36 countries as outstanding institutions. Rather than ranking the hospitals, Newsweek assigned ratings ranging from three to five leaves based on a comprehensive analysis of sustainability performance data and expert assessments.

A total of 34 hospitals worldwide received the highest five leaf rating this year. In Korea, only four hospitals, including Asan Medical Center, received the five leaf rating. Since establishing its ESG Committee in 2021 as the first general hospital in Korea to do so, Asan Medical Center has expanded ESG management across its operations, focusing on environmental sustainability (E), social responsibility (S), and transparent governance (G). Asan Medical Center has established 23 key indicators across 13 areas, along with 40 detailed goals, to systematically monitor ESG trends and progress for each indicator. Beginning this year, Asan Medical Center has also increased the frequency of ESG performance reviews from once to twice a year to strengthen implementation efforts.

Last year, Asan Medical Center carried out a range of initiatives to promote environmentally responsible management, including low carbon patient meals, expanded recycling of disposable materials and separation of liquid waste, strengthened training on medical waste separation, energy saving campaigns, and improvements in equipment efficiency. As a result, Asan Medical Center achieved all of its environmental performance targets by keeping greenhouse gas emissions below 0.134 tCO₂/m², electricity consumption below 0.208 MWh/m², and water consumption below 2.53 tons/m². Medical waste generation was also maintained at a stable reduction level, averaging 13.1 tons per day, well below the target of 16.5 tons. A total of 538 employees participated in waste separation training last year, helping raise awareness of environmentally responsible practices among staff.

Meanwhile, Asan Medical Center participates in the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s ‘Building Greenhouse Gas Total Emissions Management Program’ and ‘Building ESG Program’. Asan Medical Center has also installed electricity monitoring equipment provided by the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology to continuously monitor and manage its energy consumption.