Today’s Healthcare and Oil & Natural Gas Sectors are Deeply Intertwined

Today’s Healthcare and Oil & Natural Gas Sectors are Deeply Intertwined

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Healthcare and Oil and Gas in Canada - How the Two Sectors are Deeply Intertwined

Did you know that the modern healthcare sector relies heavily on petroleum products? Whether it be a natural gas plant generating electricity to power a hospital, the fuel used to operate a road ambulance to transport patients, or one of the countless life-saving medical devices made from petroleum, modern healthcare would not be nearly as advanced if it weren’t for the advent of various oil and natural gas technologies and products.

The reality is that many petroleum products used by doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals are currently irreplaceable --- that is, no other technologies exist that can replace them. This brings us to a simple but obvious conclusion: healthcare is deeply intertwined with oil and gas.

Let's take a look at some of the countless healthcare products made from petroleum. Also see:

Healthcare Products Made from Oil & Gas

  • Prosthetics
  • Latex gloves
  • Artificial heart valves
  • Diagnostic equipment like MRI machines
  • Medical tubes
  • Disinfectants and cleaners
  • Adhesives
  • Some bandages
  • Soap
  • Medical masks
  • Hand sanitizer
  • Respirators
  • Computers
  • Clipboards
  • Charts
  • Tape
  • Vitamins
  • Microscopes
  • Test tubes
  • Safety goggles
  • Lab burners
  • Syringes
  • Stethoscopes
  • Bandaids
  • IVs
  • Plastic protective wraps
  • Pharmaceuticals
  • Antihistamines
  • Dentures
  • Eyeglasses
  • Contact lenses
  • Hearing aids
  • Pacemakers
  • Ventilators
  • Food service equipment
  • Petri dishes
  • Blood bags
  • Elastic bandages
  • Surgical instruments
  • Back-up power generators

Sources: [1][2][3]

The Link Between Healthcare & Petroleum: Studies

Given the extensive amount of oil and gas products used by healthcare providers, it should be no surprise that several studies find a direct connection between the healthcare and petroleum sectors.

A 2019 study titled The Link Between Healthcare and Energy Supply [4] suggests that the two sectors are inextricably linked. According to the report, no modern hospital can operate without secure electricity supply, while efficient cold rooms are required to store vaccines.

Another study from 2011 titled Petroleum and Health Care: Evaluating and Managing Health Care’s Vulnerability to Petroleum Supply Shifts [8] points out that petroleum is widely used in healthcare for transport to medical supplies to plastics to pharmaceuticals, and that few substitutes exist. It concludes that the healthcare system is susceptible to petroleum supply shifts and that the impacts of longer-term supply contractions would be felt on local, regional, and national scales while challenging the sector’s organizational structure altogether.

And like many other economic sectors, the healthcare industry is a major energy consumer, accounting for anywhere from 5 to 8 per cent of global energy consumption [4].

It makes sense. Hospitals have to run 24 hours a day, seven days a week if they are to provide reliable healthcare to patients on demand. Therefore, modern facilities require a consistent electricity supply and are backed up by secondary power systems, often diesel or propane generators, if the main grid fails.

Secondary Oil & Gas Products

Many other petroleum products outside of hospitals contribute immensely to the efficacy and operation of any modern healthcare system. For example:

> The asphalt used to pave our roads and allow for speedy transportation of patients under distress to healthcare professionals is made from oil [6]

> The jet fuel used in helicopter aircraft, which transport patients to healthcare facilities often from difficult-to-reach or far-away locations, is made from oil [7]

> The plastic equipment used by ambulance responders to treat patients onsite before reaching a hospital is often made from oil and/or natural gas [1] [2] [3]

Oil & Gas Helps Doctors Save Lives

Every modern hospital room across the world is filled to the brim with products derived from oil and natural gas. From tools to medications to infrastructure to transportation, healthcare workers and facilities across the country rely heavily on petroleum products to treat patients and save lives.

It is abundantly clear that modern healthcare would look drastically different if it weren't for these invaluable products made possible by oil and natural gas!

Join us to learn more about the positive impact the energy sector has on the lives of Canadians and for more balanced, fact-based, and non-partisan discussions on our natural resource sectors – energy, forestry, mining, and agriculture – today!

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SOURCES:

1 - https://www.iogp.org/blog/news/uses-of-oil-and-gas-in-the-medical-field/,

2 – https://www.progasllc.com/oil-and-gas-impact-healthcare-industry/

3 – https://marcelluscoalition.org/2020/03/19/natural-gas-makes-life-saving-supplies-medicines-possible/

4 - https://www.swp-berlin.org/publications/products/comments/2019C14_kem_puk_voe_wep.pdf

5 - https://www.who.int/news/item/18-09-2023-billions-left-behind-on-the-path-to-universal-health-coverage

6 - https://highways.dot.gov/public-roads/september-2017/whats-your-asphalt

7 - https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ToxProfiles/tp76-c4.pdf

8 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3154246/