On May 7, 2026, an article by Mr. Joji Sugawara, Vice President of Health and Global Policy Institute (HGPI), titled “Rethinking Health Security and Structural Resilience of Healthcare Systems in Light of the Naphtha Crisis” was published in the “My Perspective” column of Nikkei Medical.

This article analyzes the complex, multilayered vulnerabilities in modern healthcare’s dependence on petrochemical products and fossil fuels, triggered by the 2026 “Naphtha Crisis” arising from Middle East geopolitical instability. From a Planetary Health perspective, it presents practical prescriptions for building structural resilience in healthcare systems.

■ Key Points of the Article

Structural Vulnerabilities from Modern Healthcare’s Oil Dependence
Modern healthcare exhibits multilayered dependencies on petrochemicals and fossil fuels, from active pharmaceutical ingredients and medical consumables like infusion tubing and syringes to helium for MRI cooling and hospital electricity and air conditioning systems. This vulnerability has repeatedly surfaced in past crises including the Great East Japan Earthquake and Kumamoto Earthquake. The joint Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry “Task Force for Securing Pharmaceuticals, Medical Devices, and Medical Supplies Affected by the Middle East Situation” established on March 31, 2026, marks a pivotal turning point—the first formal recognition of medical supply security as an integrated challenge spanning health, industrial, and energy policy. As shown in Table 1, the Task Force is composed of members with substantive authority to ensure effective implementation.

Planetary Health and the Evolving Role of Healthcare Professionals 
Based on the Planetary Health concept that “human health can only be achieved within a healthy planetary environment,” fundamental redesign of healthcare systems is required. Japan’s healthcare sector accounts for approximately 6.4% of national greenhouse gas emissions, ranking fourth globally in absolute terms. Healthcare professionals are called upon to fulfill three key roles: (1) clinical practitioners promoting evidence-based appropriate care, (2) communicators explaining climate and resource challenges, and (3) advocates advancing decarbonization policies.

Leading Domestic and International Initiatives Linking Policy and Practice 
Transformative initiatives linking policy and practice are advancing, including the UK National Health Service’s (NHS) world-first net-zero commitment for an entire healthcare system, the Japan Primary Care Association’s Climate Emergency Declaration (Hamamatsu Declaration), and practical activities by Green Practice Japan (Midori no Doctors). Japan’s “Grand Design and Action Plan for a New Form of Capitalism—2025 Revised Edition” explicitly enshrines these issues as national strategic priorities. On building climate-resilient healthcare systems, it states: “At the national level, Japan will also implement initiatives related to climate-resilient health and medical systems, low-carbon and sustainable health and medical systems, and net zero commitments (to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions) in the health and medical sector.” On circular economy integration, it commits to “Study on incorporating waste from the health, medical and nursing care sectors into the circular economy.“

A Three-Stage Roadmap for Resilience: “Prepare, Reduce, Transform” 
The article proposes a practical three-stage approach for healthcare professionals and institutions: Stage 1 “Prepare” (visualizing dependencies on medical supplies and energy, sharing regional priority allocation rules), Stage 2 “Reduce” (implementing evidence-based appropriate care and planned upgrades to energy-efficient equipment), and Stage 3 “Transform” (introducing renewable energy and implementing circular procurement policies). Short-term crisis response and long-term structural reform must proceed simultaneously.

Table 1. Members of the Task Force for Securing Pharmaceuticals, Medical Devices, and Medical Supplies Affected by the Middle East Situation

While this article primarily focuses on healthcare settings’ response to “oil dependence” triggered by the energy crisis, truly enhancing resilience and realizing “structural strengthening of healthcare systems from a Planetary Health perspective” as comprehensive “health security” requires the active involvement of the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) in addition to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (see Table 1). Only through the participation of the MOE, which oversees climate change adaptation, biodiversity conservation, and circular society policies, can the transition away from healthcare’s oil dependence toward sustainable healthcare systems function as genuine cross-sectoral policy integration that transcends bureaucratic silos.

The full article is available on Nikkei Medical with free membership registration (Japanese only).