Sustainability solutions for health care
Practice Greenhealth is the leading membership and networking organization for sustainable health care, delivering environmental solutions to hospitals and health systems across the United States.
See how we can help you:
Buildings
Promote green and healthy health care facility design, construction, renovation and operations in order to minimize environmental impacts and foster restorative and sustainable healing environments.
Read moreChemicals
Work with health care to eliminate harmful chemicals or substitute them with safer alternatives while minimizing chemical exposure of patients, health care workers, communities, and the environment.
Read moreClimate and Health
Health systems and health professionals are implementing business-smart initiatives that also protect their communities from increased diseases and more frequent extreme weather events caused by climate change.
Read MoreEnergy
Accelerate the implementation of energy efficiency while promoting clean, renewable energy in health care, mobilizing the sector as a leader for a healthy energy future for all.
Read moreEngaged Leadership
Almost 90 percent of the top-performing institutions in our sustainability benchmark report have an executive-level champion at the top of the reporting structure.
Read moreFood
Promote, purchase, and serve sustainably grown, healthy food to improve environmental health, build better food systems, and address the upstream social and economic determinants of non-communicable diseases.
Read MoreGreening the OR
Though a tiny percentage of a hospital’s total physical footprint, operating rooms can drive big facilities’ cost savings and efficiency improvements through smart, incremental, sustainable practices.
Read MoreSustainable Procurement
Sustainability professionals and purchasing managers should work together to embed sustainability into purchasing processes and engage suppliers to provide innovative, sustainable products with a reduced impact on human health and the environment.
Read MoreTransportation
Promote transportation strategies for patients, their families, and staff that support healthier local and regional transport systems while reducing health care's environmental impact.
Read MoreWaste
Promote zero waste policies, reduce the volume and toxicity of waste produced by the health care sector, and implement safe, sustainable disposal options as alternatives to incineration.
Read MoreWater
Reducing water consumption is a great place for hospitals and health systems to start improving their environmental impact and sustainability practices.
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NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
Health Care Culinary Contest recipe database
Our new Health Care Culinary Contest database has over 100 plant-forward recipes created by hospital chefs.
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Improved Health Care Emission Impact Calculator, plus new action plan template
Practice Greenhealth is pleased to share the new Health Care Emissions Impact Calculator 2.0, which features several improvements, and new resources to support your GHG emissions reduction journey.
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New case study reveals supplier-health care collab to pare down plastic packaging, $2 million in savings
Kaiser Permanente leveraged its purchasing power to collaborate on a packaging redesign to reduce waste and save money.
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News & Updates
Transforming health care: Sustainability success stories from the operating room
At Practice Greenhealth, we’re dedicated to coaching hospitals through their sustainability journey by targeting key areas like operating rooms. Anesthetic gases, like desflurane, are crucial in surgeries but can also be significant contributors to the climate crisis. To address this, our partner hospitals and health systems are prioritizing the reduction and elimination of one of the most costly anesthetic gases with the highest global warming potential – desflurane. But there’s great news, according to our Sustainability Benchmark Report – 40% of our partners have eliminated desflurane from general use. This shift resulted in a remarkable reduction of nearly 200,000 MTCO2e of emissions from inhaled anesthetics in 2023, contributing to almost $3 million in savings. Recognizing our champions And now we’re celebrating two new standout examples of success: OhioHealth announc...
Read MorePodcast pick: Doctors unpack the health care plastic crisis
Our experts guide listeners through the history, current usage, and future innovations in under 40 minutes.
Read MoreNew resilient flooring products now Greenhealth Approved and ready for purchase
ShawContract and Patcraft now have the Greenhealth Approved seal for their EcoWorx resilient flooring.
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