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Use this change-management approach to make the case for prioritizing food-related initiatives.
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The most prestigious honor for those committed to health care sustainability, Practice Greenhealth's Environmental Excellence Awards recognize health care facilities, health sector suppliers, and member organizations for making a commitment to and progressing toward environmental stewardship and sustainability.
Each year, Practice Greenhealth honors health care facilities through the following awards:
Top 25 Environmental Excellence Award
The Top 25 Environmental Excellence Award is Practice Greenhealth’s highest honor for hospitals. These hospitals are leading the industry with innovation… Read More
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Reducing surplus food is at the top of the EPA food recovery hierarchy because it has the greatest financial, environmental, and social impacts.
Use our guidance to determine which source reduction strategies will work best for your facility and how to integrate them into your standard operating policies and procedures. Track your impact, and share results with leadership.
Assemble the team
In addition to your core team, you may want to include people with roles such as the executive chef, nutrition and dietetics, inventory manager, prep, line cooks, catering, and front of house servers… Read More
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Many of our member hospitals have made eliminating polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and the plasticizer di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) from clinical products and devices a top priority, by creating PVC- and DEHP-free purchasing policies as part of their larger institutional safer chemicals policy, and by targeting specific hospital areas, such as the NICU, or product categories one-by-one.
Switching to products that are free of both PVC and DEHP is beneficial to patient safety. The Food and Drug Administration has recommended hospitals limit exposures to DEHP for sensitive populations, especially… Read More
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Hand hygiene remains one of the most critical infection prevention strategies in health care. However, common antimicrobial ingredients, such as triclosan and triclocarban, which are used widely in health care for hand hygiene, have also been shown to pose health risks to long-term users. Health care workers can wash or sanitize their hands in a single shift as many as 100 times according to CDC, leading to measurable exposures.
The Food and Drug Administration restricted the use of triclosan and 23 other ingredients in antiseptic washes and rubs for use in health care, effective December… Read More
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Mercury reduction policies are among the most common environmental commitments in health care. Mercury is toxic to human health, posing a particular threat to the development of the child. To target mercury reduction and elimination as a goal, hospitals and health systems first need to assess where mercury is found within their facilities, which might include:
Clinical devices, such as thermometers, sphygmomanometers, esophageal bougies and dilators, certain tubing, and dental amalgam
Facility equipment, such as switches, relays, thermostats, fluorescent lamps and light bulbs, and batteries… Read More
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Leadership data is focused on the infrastructure, processes, accountabilities, and engagement mechanisms for sustainability at the facility level. These data points are largely focused on narrative descriptions and supporting policies or plans.
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The built environment plays an important role in both the promotion of healing in patients and the health of building occupants. Most green building data is related to design and construction policies, planning, and standards – including information on building materials and furnishings.
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Composting landscape and food waste is a viable waste reduction strategy for many hospital and health systems. Long-term benefits of compost programs for hospitals might include:
Reduces incineration or landfill disposal costs for dense and heavy landscape and food scraps
Avoids costly extra water discharges from wastewater treatment due to food waste sludge created by industrial food disposal systems.
Saves landscaping budget by increasing water retention, aeration, and soil nutrients, which reduces mulch, fertilizers, and pesticide purchases.
Unneeded compost can potentially be sold or… Read More
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Hospitals have significant buying power as they are often one of the community’s largest consumers. By purchasing food and beverages that have earned trusted third-party certifications for quality and sustainable practices, hospitals can shift the entire food system toward sustainability, without significant cost increases to total food service spending. In many cases, this can be done through collaborative efforts with the health care supply chain and vendors, via tactics including:
Using purchase power to move away from detrimental food production practices like the overuse of antibiotics… Read More
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Practice Greenhealth is the health care sector’s go-to source for information, tools, data, resources, and expert technical support on sustainability initiatives that help hospitals and health systems meet their health, financial, and community goals.
Who We Are
Practice Greenhealth is the leading sustainable health care organization, delivering environmental solutions to more than 1,500 hospitals and health systems in the United States and Canada. Partnership opportunities include hospitals, health systems, community health organizations, NGOs, nonprofits, government, academic institutions, and the health care value chain.