Chair File: Making Health Care More Environmentally Sustainable

Earth Day was first celebrated on April 22, 1970. What started in the U.S. as a day of education and activities focused on the environment has since spread to hundreds of countries across the globe. The 54th anniversary of that day is a good time to reflect on how many hospitals and health systems are addressing environmental sustainability.

We know that the environment directly affects people’s health and well-being. There is clear evidence that air pollution, for example, can exacerbate chronic conditions like asthma and also lead to cancer, stroke and other illnesses and disease.  

The AHA has developed a sustainability roadmap for health care. This roadmap provides excellent resources and strategic guidance for hospitals and health systems that are adopting practices to support the environment and their communities. Resources include a sustainability glossary, Sustainability Accelerator Tool and the HealQuest training program offered by AHA’s American Society for Health Care Engineering. Visit AHA.org to check out the information and resources designed to assist health care organizations wherever they are on a sustainability journey.

As health care organizations, it is our responsibility to take steps to address our own carbon footprint and to do all we can to minimize the impact our facilities have on the environment. At Dartmouth Health, the system I lead, we practice environmental stewardship every day. Our environmentally sustainable management of land, energy and toxic waste helps us to oversee our own carbon footprint. And our investments in solar energy projects, our commitment to keeping unused land sustainable and our food production projects, such as the Dartmouth Health Willing Hands Farmacy Garden, are a way for us to foster food security in our communities.

Environmental sustainability and decarbonization align with hospitals’ missions to strengthen the health of patients, employees and communities. The complexities of our health care system call for strong leadership and creative problem-solving to make changes that improve the environment and keep our communities healthy.