Practice Greenhealth has launched a study on the impact of sustainability “best practices” on patient and healthcare worker outcomes and lowering costs.
The study, which will be funded by global medical technology company BD, is a combined effort of the recently organized Healthcare Research Collaborative.
The collaborative is a partnership of Practice Greenhealth, a member-based organization dedicated to sustainability in healthcare; the international advocacy organization Healthcare Without Harm; and the Healthier Hospitals Initiative, a coalition of leading U.S. health systems committed to improving sustainability and safety across the healthcare sector.
HHI recently developed a Healthier Hospitals Agenda that uses evidence-based design and research data to recommend nine categories of sustainability interventions and actions within each category.
The year-long study, conducted by the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health, will collect data from hospitals around the country that are using the HHI Agenda recommendations or implementing comprehensive sustainability actions, including:
- Designing and operating healthier and safer facilities for patients and employees;
- Purchasing safer and more sustainable products and materials and supporting the use of safer chemicals and green chemistry;
- Promoting nutritious, sustainable food choices;
- Reducing the consumption of energy, conserving water and minimizing waste and emissions;
- Addressing pharmaceutical waste and improving transportation strategies for patients and staff; and
- Creating a culture in which sustainability is linked to patient and worker safety.
“BD is pleased to support this long-needed research toward developing data that could clearly demonstrate the benefits of sustainability efforts on health and economic outcomes,” said Glenn Barbi, BD's vice president of global sustainability. “We are committed to providing affordable, accessible medical technologies that help address fundamental healthcare needs.”
Studies have suggested that sustainable practices in healthcare can lead to better patient outcomes, fewer work-related injuries, a cleaner environment and significant cost savings. However, the evidence of such benefits is mainly anecdotal, said Practice Greenhealth officials.
Some examples of sustainable practices:
- System-wide conservation practices in one hospital network cut water use by 20 percent to 30 percent, saving $100,000 a year for some facilities.
- A reduction in a hospital's energy use of 18 percent to 20 percent is achievable using current standard technology coupled with minor capital expenditures costing 1 percent to 2 percent.
- One hospital reported that workers compensation claims went down after it implemented a greener cleaning program.
- When Kaiser Permanente launched an environmentally preferred purchasing program, the network saved $20 million in one year while opening up the market to more affordable, healthier products.
- HCA implemented a medical device reprocessing program in 2009, saving $30 million across its system with only 20 percent compliance.
- In terms of design, access to daylight in hospitals has been linked with reduced depression among patients, reduced length of stay and less need for pain medication.
- One U.S. study found consistent positive correlation between 17 greener buildings and staff recruitment and retention.
Practice Greenhealth officials say that if these savings can be spread across the entire sector, the healthcare cost savings will result in billions of dollars per year.