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As your stretcher is wheeled into a hospital operating room (OR) and you stare up at the bright surgical lights, you are likely thinking about your impending surgery, not if those lights have LED bulbs or if the anesthetic gas you are about to breathe contributes to climate change. But maybe you should be. Hospitals consume over 10% of the nation's energy and generate more than 5.9 million tons of waste a year, and the health care sector is responsible for 8% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. The OR consumes more than its fair share of resources, eating up, on average, one third of a hospital… Read More
Type: Press
A total cost of ownership and Sustainable Health in Procurement Project case study
Name of facility, location
Mayo Clinic
Rochester, Minnesota
Highlights
The Mayo Clinic had a fleet of over 1,000 lab freezers that use as much energy as about 1,000 homes.
They standardized purchasing practices for their fleet of ultra-cold lab freezers to buy more energy-efficient models.
By selecting the most energy-efficient model, rather than the lowest price, they will achieve a 60% energy-use reduction and long-term savings of more than $6 million over 10 years.
Ultra-cold laboratory freezers… Read More
Type: Resources
Practice Greenhealth is excited to announce the recipients of this year's Environmental Excellence Awards, recognizing health care facilities across the country that have maintained and strengthened their commitment to sustainability amidst a pandemic. Health care institutions have found innovative ways to make progress on reducing their environmental impacts while facing unique challenges in the past year. These facilities recognize the intrinsic link between environment, climate, and health, and are working to lead by example.
Hospitals reported achievement across 11 different areas of… Read More
Type: Press
By John Strong Principal of John Strong, LLC and serves as president of Greenhealth Management
As you shake the sleep off, you realize that the sounds of your 12-year-old daughter’s latest asthma attack woke you. You determine immediately that this is going to require another trip to your local health care provider’s emergency room. When you pull up to the door of the emergency room, housed in a brand-new facility built by the largest integrator of care in your state, you feel palpable relief. There’s no wait—and soon a physician, nurses and others have her situation under control.
No one… Read More
Type: Press
Increased awareness around the presence of pharmaceuticals in drinking water has resulted in closer scrutiny and increased regulatory oversight of pharmaceutical waste. Evidence of feminization of fish raised a red flag and resulted in more studies, closer scrutiny, and concern for human health and the environment. The U.S. Geological Survey has done extensive work to characterize the kinds and volumes of pharmaceuticals ending up in waterways. Learn more at U.S. Geological Survey's Emerging Contaminants Project.
While hazardous pharmaceutical waste management is a headline news item at… Read More
Type: Resources
A Practice Greenhealth Case Study
“Organics recycling and food waste diversion remain very important to us, and we are slowly but surely working to expand both the number of facilities with organics recycling and the types of materials that can be recycled.” – Allison Egan, HealthPartners Sustainability Consultant
HealthPartners wanted to reduce sending organic waste to the landfill. They hoped to reduce their climate impact, lower their taxes, and recycle the nutrients found in food waste.
The health system partnered with a farmer, a commercial composter, and a community garden and… Read More
Type: Resources
Calling all health professional students, are you ready to jumpstart your career in sustainable health care? CleanMed is the premier national conference for leaders in health care sustainability – both current and future.
Welcoming the next generation of sustainability leaders
We are eager to support the next generation of doctors, nurses, hospital administrators, supply chain experts, and public health professionals as you advance climate-smart health care and lead the way toward a sustainable future.
Meet the people you want to become – Our network represents 1,400 hospitals and health… Read More
Type: Press
Sustainability programs that are aligned with organizational priorities are more likely to gain senior leadership’s support and lead to long-term success. Almost 90% of the top-performing institutions in our sustainability benchmark reports have an executive-level champion at the top of their reporting structure. This executive champion or sponsor brings credibility and authority to the program’s mission and goals while setting a tone from the top that this work is important.
Equally important are environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria. This criteria has been used for years to… Read More
Type: Basic page
Practice Greenhealth’s Visionary Leader Award annually recognizes a senior-level health care executive who has effectively advocated for and woven sustainability and environmental stewardship into health care operations through innovative strategies and mentorship. The 2020 winner of the Visionary Leader Award is Alison Santore.
Santore is an influential leader and tireless advocate for the poor and vulnerable. As Providence’s senior vice president of government affairs and social responsibility, she is a strong supporter of underserved communities. She leads this work within Providence’s… Read More
Type: Press
Practice Greenhealth announced the 2020 recipients of the Top 25 Environmental Excellence Awards, the most prestigious environmental achievement for health care.
Including the Top 25, Practice Greenhealth recognized 421 health care organizations across 10 areas of sustainability through its annual Environmental Excellence Awards. This includes the Circles of Excellence honors to the top 10 hospitals nationwide in each sustainability impact area, Greening the OR Leadership and Recognition Awards, Greenhealth Emerald Awards, Partner for Change and Partner Recognition Awards, Making… Read More
Type: Press
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.