There are many pressures on hospitals and other healthcare service providers, healthcare consumables and equipment suppliers, designers, builders and operators of healthcare premises, and of those servicing the waste disposal requirements of healthcare providers to ‘go green’.
Foremost among this particular sector of the green revolution is Practice Greenhealth. This US based organisation is proficient at developing and sharing best practice. Though some of their ideas are best described as ‘cookie’ Practice Greenhealth and its supporters have made a considerable contribution, and even the most implausible of ideas contribute to the development and further rationalisation of the green effort.
Practice Greenhealth have now circulated this list of PGH member’s Green Web Pages. Take a look. These is much to be learned from the information presented not all of which will, or should, translate easily into UK and European healthcare practice. There is, however, much to be learned and admired about the efforts made.
- Stonybrook Hospital – Environmental Protection webpages. http://www.stonybrook.edu/ehs/healthcare/environmental/
- Memorial Sloane Kettering – http://www.mskcc.org/about/sustainability-msk
- Gundersen Lutheran – http://www.gundluth.org/green
- Cleveland Clinic – http://my.clevelandclinic.org/about-cleveland-clinic/office-for-healthy-environment/default.aspx
- Advocate Health – http://www.advocatehealth.com/environmentalstewardship
- Kaiser Permanente – http://xnet.kp.org/newscenter/aboutkp/green/index.html
- Dignity Health – http://www.dignityhealth.org/Who_We_Are/Environment/index.htm
- MetroWest Medical Center – http://www.mwmc.com/community-resources/GoingGreen.aspx
- Tenet Health Care – http://www.tenethealth.com/community/pages/default.aspx
- Spectrum Health – http://www.spectrumhealth.org/greeninitiatives
- University Health Network’s Green Page, currently being updated as part of a whole internet update, is at http://www.uhn.ca/About_UHN/greening_UHN/index.asp. Blog with regular features on green happenings at UHN is at http://talkintrashwithuhn.com/.
- Partners Health – https://www.partners.org/Innovation-And-Leadership/Sustainability/Default.aspx
- Beth Israel Deaconess – http://www.bidmc.org/AboutBIDMC/EnvironmentalInitiatives.aspx
- Yale New Haven Hospital – http://www.ynhh.org/about-us/sustainability.aspx
- University of Washington Medical Center – http://f2.washington.edu/ess/engage
The very idea that these organisations have thought about the need for environmental stewardship, and have created web pages to guide and support their staff and record their successes is highly commendable. Good luck to all concerned.