According to Politico, Laurence Caussin, who works at the CHU Brugmann hospital in Brussels, has been preparing with her team for the past 14 years to make the hospital more energy efficient.

She said that "the cost of heating, that’s really something we can influence a lot."

With the exception of some wards, such as the maternity and neonatal units, the hospital's staff will be instructed to lower the thermostat to 20 degrees Celsius, which is about two degrees lower compared to last Winter's ambient temperature.

The windows also have sensors that automatically turn off the heating or cooling system if they are opened.

Caussin says that for each degree Celsius lower temperature, the whole hospital is able to save some 7% energy.

Also, in some non-essential parts of the medical unit, patients and staff will only be able to use cold water from the tap, also a measure to save on energy.

"We’ll keep going, but it’s true that the low-hanging fruit, we’ve already eaten them", the manager in charge of energy use added, as she mentioned that the 99 years old hospital can't be as easily retrofitted as more modern medical centers.

Doctors are afraid that the inflation and higher energy prices might mean bad news for patient care.

Gerald Gaß, chief executive officer of the German Hospital Federation, which represents all hospitals in the country, said that " when you have a restaurant and your energy prices increase, you can increase the price of your products, so you can handle it, perhaps, but we can’t."

"If nothing happens, we will lose hospitals", Gaß added.

Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel also has to deal with higher energy bills this year, expected to reach 6 million euros, while next year, the number is expected to grow to 12 million if the problem persists.

On average, hospitals use about 31 kWh of energy per square meter, but in some cases, the number can reach even 289 kWh, which is why these medical units must lower their energy costs by getting new, more energy efficient equipment, for example.

Domestic energy production can be a solution

According to Pascal Garel, chief executive at the European Hospital and Healthcare Federation, the energy bill represents about two to five percent of a hospital's annual budget.

The price hikes mean that not only will the hospitals be more expensive to operate, but also the price of equipment and pharmaceutical products is likely to increase as well.

Laurence Caussin says that both CHU Brugmann and Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel have generators that can turn gas into electricity, which are said to be energy efficient.

CHU Brugmann was able to reduce its energy bill prices by one million euros per year since the generator was introduced back in 2016, which is able to deliver about half of the hospital's power needs.

The two medical units also make use of solar panels, which also help with domestic energy production and the reduction of the energy bill.

Daniel Eriksson, chief executive officer and founder at the Nordic Center for Sustainable Healthcare, said that "when everything is perfect, then you don't want to take the high costs. But as we saw in COVID and now when it comes to the climate crisis in Europe, those who have been working with energy efficiency, circular solutions and smart solutions, I claim that they are a little bit more resilient when it comes to a pandemic or a climate crisis or energy crisis."