Every day, patients and workers are exposed to a wide array of chemicals in hospitals and health care facilities. Many of these chemicals have been shown to have a lasting negative impact on individual health, public health, and the environment.
Resilient flooring has a big impact on the indoor environment and on the employee and patient experience in your facility. Choosing healthier flooring can:
- Decrease patient, staff, and visitor exposures to harmful chemicals that have links to asthma, cancer, and developmental impacts, among other health effects.
- Decrease the volume of toxic and persistent chemicals being released into our environment.
- Decrease the toxic impact of flooring on manufacturing communities where production facilities are located.
- Eliminate the need for toxic floor strippers and finishes.
- Reduce maintenance costs and time.
- Decrease the total cost of ownership.
- Drive greater transparency in the flooring materials market.
Healthy Flooring goal
Health care institutions ensure that at least 25% of flooring (based on square footage) installed per year meets the healthy flooring silver or gold level criteria.
Institutions also commit to installing the flooring using adhesives that are certified by a third party volatile organic compound (VOC) certification, as specified.
The Healthy Flooring goal is intended to encourage hospitals to purchase products that meet our Healthy Flooring silver or gold level criteria.
Products that pass vetting can achieve either a Silver or Gold Healthy Flooring rating through Greenhealth Approved. Visit the Products Page of Greenhealth Approved for a list of manufacturers that meet the healthy flooring criteria.
Practice Greenhealth offers step-by-step resources that will make it simpler for any hospital or health care organization to design, implement, and measure the success of their chemical reduction efforts.
Manufacturers can signal the market that their products meet the criteria by applying for the Greenhealth Approved seal.
