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Plant-forward is a style of cooking and eating that emphasizes and celebrates, but is not limited to, foods from plant sources – fruits and vegetables (produce), whole grains, legumes (pulses), nuts and seeds, plant oils, and herbs and spices – and reflects evidence-based principles of health and sustainability. – Culinary Institute of America
Plant-forward is the most delicious “quadruple” bottom line approach that health care can take – achieving social, environmental, and financial goals while providing great-tasting food.
Explore why food champions in every profession from chefs to… Read More
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“Not only does this project impact greenhouse gasses from keeping food waste out of the landfill, it is also about dollars saved, which is important to hospital administrators, and then there is the food rescue piece which is what is really important to our community.”
– Jack Breezee, Sutter Health regional director of food and nutrition services
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Sutter Health knew they were wasting food but didn’t know how much. They wanted to find a way to reduce food waste – and knew they could help their community at the same time.
Sutter Health partnered with our… Read More
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Hospitals are environments for healing but many of the products and materials that come into a hospital may be harmful to patients, staff and those in the community. Some products used in health care may contain or release (during production, use or disposal) carcinogens, reproductive toxins, or other hazardous materials. Many of the chemicals used in products have not been adequately tested for toxicity. Additionally, there are a growing number of disposable products in health care and large amounts of packaging creating significant waste, and a variety of products that are energy or water-… Read More
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Chefs and health care food professionals are reimagining hospital food’s potential one meal at a time. Using the health care setting to model healthier food choices and making more sustainable foods available to patients, employees, and visitors has many benefits including:
Improved health and well-being for patients, employees, and visitors
Increased reported satisfaction from both employees and patients on scoring measures
Enhanced employee productivity
Serving as a powerful recruitment tool and regional differentiator for attracting top talent to the hospital.
Greater food service… Read More
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By joining as an Industry Partner, we provide opportunities for organizations to access more in-depth information and resources, participate in higher-level opportunities, and obtain greater visibility in the health care sustainability space and the Practice Greenhealth network to meet their professional and business objectives.
If health care is everyone's business, then certainly transforming health care should be also. The challenges of environmental stewardship, climate health, and addressing the social determinants of health stand to benefit from the creativity and collective work of… Read More
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“Superstorm Sandy showed us we were vulnerable to climate-driven extreme weather events. The storm and its aftermath caused us to intensely focus on resilient and sustainable design."
– Paul Schwabacher, P.E., Senior Vice President, Facilities Management
KEY TAKEAWAYS
In 2023 alone, there were 28 confirmed weather/climate disaster events with losses exceeding $1 billion each to affect the United States – and hospitals and health systems are on the front lines of these disasters.
When Hurricane Sandy struck its Manhattan main campus in 2012, NYU Langone Health experienced a… Read More
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Medical devices and equipment cost more than their initial purchase price. Maintenance, energy demands, disposal costs, and other long-term costs of ownership can drastically change the lifetime price tag of products and equipment.
The tool provides a framework to assess the financial costs and bring hidden costs to the surface, including:
Maintenance
Use
Disposal
Looking at the maintenance, use, and disposal costs to an organization means looking at costs, such as:
Energy use, water consumption, fuel, and waste disposal
Cleaning
Consumables
Taking all of these factors into account… Read More
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Engaging staff in sustainable initiatives can give them a greater sense of ownership in the organization and in meeting goals, which can help you recruit and more importantly, retain, your organization’s talented people.
Employees who say they have the opportunity to make a direct social and environmental impact report higher satisfaction than those who don’t – which can influence recruitment and retention of top talent.
Some examples of successful employee engagement strategies include:
Engage staff in sustainability programs and in the celebrations of success
Offer employees “green”… Read More
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Practice Greenhealth is here to guide your health care organization to integrate sustainability as a strategic priority and become a change agent for creating healthier, sustainable, and more resilient communities.
Health care organizations and companies of all sizes are realizing the many benefits that come from embedding sustainability into their operations including efficiency improvements, cost savings, reduced regulatory risk, enhanced employee engagement and retention, greater stakeholder satisfaction, improved public health, and public relations gains.
Following key elements of a… Read More
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“Our team shared information with staff about not only what we were doing but why. If you want buy-in from the people preparing and serving the items you’ve created, they need to be a part of it and support it. Frontline staff represent everything you’re trying to showcase. Without their support, you will lose momentum, and your patients and customers will not see the importance of the changes being made.”
– Jill Martin, senior director of food and nutrition services.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Food production accounts for approximately 25% of global greenhouse emissions and contributes to… Read More
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Join Practice Greenhealth
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.