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By Julie Moyle, MSN, RN, Outreach and Engagement Specialist, Practice Greenhealth
In 2016, the state of Florida saw states of emergencies as a result of a massive algae bloom in its fresh water supply, the arrival of the Zika virus, and two hurricanes which brought flooding and destruction to both coastlines, as well as the all the associated health and economic impacts. Already at sea level, Miami and many others coastal cities along the Atlantic seaboard are experiencing an increase in “sunny day floods,” which means during tidal events, rising sea levels are resulting in an increase in… Read More
Type: Press
Practice Greenhealth at HPRC and Wisconsin Healthy Hospitals & Clinics Forum
Iqbal Mian, Member Engagement Manager
Earlier this fall, Practice Greenhealth along with various hospital systems, suppliers and manufacturers participated in the Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council hosted at Goodwill, Los Angeles. The onsite work included interactive sessions, facilitated exercises and other brainstorming to advance the council’s mission to inspire and enable effective recycling solutions across health care. Practice Greenhealth members like Kaiser Permanente also presented their delivery of… Read More
Type: Press
Christopher Bodkin, Data Coordinator Sector Performance and Recognition
Waste from the health care sector is significant:
255 Million lbs. of blue wrap is thrown away annually.
Businesses are turning blue wrap into products for hospitals.
Hospitals are creating blue wrap recycling programs.
Health care waste generation can be turned around to develop products promote environmental and economic health.
Historically, business success has been measured by making money, by boundless growth through linear consumption of resources and exploitation of environmental capital. Times are… Read More
Type: Press
Look beyond the price tag – consider the organization’s total financial commitment when purchasing products and services.
Hospitals have an enormous energy footprint—the impact of this is costly, both financially and environmentally.
Gaining more insight into supply costs—beyond the initial price tag—is an important step to saving money. When it comes to the total cost of ownership of a product, additional costs occur through the use and upkeep of a product and any additional resources it takes to run or maintain it, including the cost of energy and water use. The question of disposal also… Read More
Type: Press
Food service departments across the country are influencing their supply chain by channeling human health values into their purchasing choices. Yet, the impact does not end at the point of purchase. When these products are tracked with intention, teasing out which are sourced locally and which are produced with verifiable environmentally and socially preferred practices, it reveals the sweet spot, the crossover where a product carries both attributes simultaneously.
Identifying and accurately tracking these crossover products allows hospitals to use their purchasing power to most effectively… Read More
Type: Press
RESTON, Virginia (September 1, 2016)—Last week, nine leading health systems—Advocate Health Care, Catholic Health Initiatives, Dartmouth-Hitchcock, Gundersen Health System, HackensackUMC, Kaiser Permanente, Partners HealthCare*, University Hospitals Health System, and Veterans Health Administration Nutrition and Food Services—called on food producers and manufacturers to meet the growing demand for meat and poultry raised without the routine use of antibiotics by health care organizations.
John Strong, President and CEO of Greenhealth Exchange (GX), applauded the health care sector’s call… Read More
Type: Press
Greenhealth pushes sustainable products, services to the forefront of contract availability
http://www.hpnonline.com/inside/2016-09/1609-SF-sustainability.html
by Rick Dana Barlow
When it comes to progressing toward and implementing environmentally responsible contracting and purchasing of sustainable products and services, a small percentage of forward-thinking "green"-minded healthcare organizations have been making some waves.
Through their individual philosophies and projects, they have been carrying the flag for sustainability in healthcare, which they promote as fitting hand-in-… Read More
Type: Press
Hospitals and food banks will provide nutritious food to communities in need across the country.
June 7, 2016 (Reston, Virginia) – Practice Greenhealth and Feeding America announced today a new collaboration to help Americans living at risk of hunger. The nation’s largest domestic hunger relief organization and leading health care sustainability membership organization have created a nationwide program to donate excess food from hospitals and health care facilities to local food banks.
More than 48 million Americans are food insecure, according to the USDA.
“Building upon its commitment to… Read More
Type: Press
Kathy Gerwig presented Kaiser Permanente’s Bold Goals for improved environmental performance in a Practice Greenhealth March 2016 webinar entitled “THRIVE – Setting Bold Goals at Kaiser Permanente.” Kaiser Permanente’s goals are team goals – with team responsibility. They don’t rest on the shoulders of any one person. They put the goals out there and then work together to achieve them. That feels right to me. To not over think it.
But it’s not just goal setting, Kaiser Permanente frames up their commitment with vision statements. The vision is followed by a goal which is made actionable and… Read More
Type: Press
Showcases growing movement to eliminate chemicals of concern from health care
[Reston, VA] Eleven furniture manufacturers and two textile suppliers have publicly released lists of products that avoid the use of chemicals linked to negative health and environmental impacts. The release of these lists makes it easy for hospitals to identify, compare, and select furniture that meets their sustainability standards. Broadly, the availability of this resource demonstrates the commitment of the market to move away from products containing chemicals of concern.
Furniture companies that provided… Read More
Type: Press
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