Since 1970, Earth Day has been an international event that allows people and organizations to understand more about their environmental impact, celebrate their positive actions, and commit to making positive change. This year Earthday.org declares, “When the world goes back to normal, we can’t go back to business-as-usual.” 

April 22 may be an excellent opportunity for hospitals and health systems to evaluate and celebrate their own environmental stewardship. Practice GreenHealth, a nonprofit membership organization founded on the principles of positive environmental stewardship and best practices by organizations in the health care community, lists several areas in which hospitals can work to improve their sustainability:

• Building architecture and construction
• Chemical utilization
• Energy consumption
• Sustainable procurement practices
• Water utilization
• Transportation
• Waste management

Across Pennsylvania, HAP members are engaged in numerous initiatives that improve overall sustainability in health care. HAPevolve, a subsidiary of HAP, is working to identify more sustainabile solutions in health care. Currently—in conjunction with its partner Mazree—HAPevolve has worked with several hospitals to evaluate processes and policies regarding asset disposal. HAPevolve’s and Mazree’s partnership to improve end-of-life asset strategy has helped hospitals identify significant opportunities to bolster efficiency and reduce environmental impacts. 

Focusing on an approach driven by a slightly modified 3R’s—re-deploy, re-sell, and recycle—HAPevolve has found that hospitals may be able to make a positive impact on their waste management and improve their sustainability. A hospital using this methodology was able to re-deploy more than 200 assets, sell more than 3,500 assets, and recycle assets that would have accounted for over 84,000 pounds of waste destined for a landfill or incinerator. 

Asset recovery programs such as Mazree can provide immediate revenue to the hospitals, and provide a transparent way to help communities, clean out the clutter, and keep the Earth clean.

For more information about HAPevolve’s sustainability efforts, or the results of its work in asset recovery, please contact Lori Mulholland, HAPevolve’s director, business development.