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The Coolfood Pledge helps dining facilities – from hotels and restaurants to universities, schools, hospitals, and workplace cafeterias – cut their food-related greenhouse gas emissions by increasing and improving their plant-forward menu options.This 30-minute presentation discusses how food production contributes to climate change, how your hospital can employ low and no-cost solutions to reduce its Scope 3 emissions from food purchasing, and concludes with success stories from hospitals already seeing results.
Type: Resources
The Coolfood Pledge is a new platform to help hospitals offer diners more of what they want while slashing food-related greenhouse gas emissions, saving costs, and improving health. The pledge is a cross-sector initiative championed by the World Resources Institute with the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from food purchasing by 25% by 2030. Practice Greenhealth supports the health care sector in meeting the goal. Health care is showing leadership with over 175 hospitals pledging, representing over 140 million (combined) meals annually. The Coolfood Pledge is a free benefit for… Read More
Type: Basic page
The Climate Excellence Standard for health sector suppliers defines superior performance in decarbonization on the part of individual suppliers – including manufacturers and distributors – to ensure the health care supply chain is aligned with achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, while improving resilience. Reducing the health care sector’s reliance on fossil fuels is critical for reducing deaths and diseases related to greenhouse gas emissions, and the time is now for deep engagement across the supply chain.
Purpose and use:
Use of the standard will include showcasing suppliers that… Read More
Type: Basic page
More than a third of our member hospitals have identified furniture and furnishings as an area where they’d like to reduce patient, employee, and visitor exposure to chemicals of concern, especially as evidence shows that many of the chemicals used in these products off-gas, or migrate out, from the finished product and get into the air and dust, exposing employees, patients, and visitors to the chemicals.Targeted chemicals of concern in furniture and furnishings include:Formaldehyde, a known human carcinogen, found in furniture, cabinets, countertops, and many other products.Flame retardant… Read More
Type: Basic page
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… Read More
Type: Basic page
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
Type: Basic page
Carpet can negatively impact the indoor environment and the employee and patient experience in your facility. Some volatile organic compounds that can be released from the carpet into the indoor air are carcinogens or reproductive and developmental toxicants. Other hazardous chemicals can contaminate indoor dust, resulting in exposures. Workers in carpet manufacturing and recycling facilities can be exposed to carcinogens, asthmagens, and reproductive and developmental toxicants.Choosing healthier recyclable carpet can:Decrease patient, staff, and visitor exposures to harmful chemicals that… Read More
Type: Basic page
With 17% of the marketplace, health care wields major purchasing power. This buying clout puts hospitals and health systems in an excellent position to demand safer, healthier, more environmentally-friendly products from vendors.Yet few environmental standards exist for medical products. As a result, health care supply chain professionals must often go it alone.Why smarter purchasing?Hospitals can leverage their collective purchasing power to generate demand for healthier and safer productsThe health care sector represents 17 percent of the U.S. marketplaceSome products marketed to the… Read More
Type: Basic page
Why sharing your sustainability story still mattersIn today’s complex and often polarized landscape, many organizations are carefully weighing how and when to talk about their climate and sustainability work. The risks of being misunderstood or politicized are real, and for some, staying quiet feels like the safer choice.But thoughtful communication is still possible and powerful. Even in a cautious environment, there are ways to share your progress with integrity, transparency, and care.A growing trend known as greenhushing describes the decision to downplay or stay silent about… Read More
Type: Press
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
Type: Basic page
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.