THE SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE OF A LOCAL HOSPITAL ON ENERGY EFFICIENCY 2
Sustainability Initiative Part Six
Erica Edmondson
MHA/560
August 9, 2021
James Jones
A sustainability initiative of an institution involves taking steps to improve the current conditions of the particular institutions economically, socially, environmentally, and politically, without sacrificing the future. These steps mean that the institution is mindful of its activities to ensure that they continue to survive through the world’s changing conditions. The following essay will focus on the sustainability initiatives taken by a local hospital through energy efficiency.
A local hospital offers different services, including short-term and long-term admission, out-patient care, major and minor surgeries, laboratory, x-ray, and radiology services. Most of these services in modern hospitals use electricity all the time, meaning that energy consumption is maximum. A sustainability initiative would develop different strategies to ensure the sparing use of energy without compromising the quality of healthcare services patients get. These initiatives would aim to attain certain objectives, including preserving a climate-friendly environment while still providing quality healthcare services through all the hospital departments. The mission statement of this initiative is to create a clean environment toward the transition to a clean energy institution.
One of the steps that a local hospital should take to achieve maximum energy efficiency is natural light. This technique is called the Window-Wall Ratio, introduced by the Brazilian Building Energy Efficiency Legislation to take advantage of natural light (Rosa, & Lomardo, 2004). In addition, the hospital should change some of its structures like investing in bigger translucent windows that can allow natural light into the examination and patient rooms and ensure patient privacy. These features will cut costs on the electricity bills because lights will always be off during the day and can only be used at night.
Furthermore, the hospital can install dimming controls on lights in rooms that do not access enough natural light during the day (Xu, Pan, Yao, Cai, Huang, & Linder, 2017). For example, the lighting equipment like bulbs in the hallways, waiting rooms, and some examination rooms can have adjustment features. These features will automatically adjust according to the amount of natural light the room gets. For example, the lights dim during the day while they get brighter as the earth becomes darker. This feature will save energy as it cuts on the amount of electricity used.
Another option is using alternative renewable energy modes rather than electricity as it cuts costs up to 40% (Prada, Cristea, Popescu, Bungău, Aleya, & Bungău, 2020). For example, a local hospital should invest in solar panels to provide electricity to some departments that do not run on so much power, like the patient rooms and waiting areas. This feature would ensure that only the Intensive Care Units and the critical patient rooms can use electricity. Solar panels rely on sunlight which is a safe mode of energy that will ensure the sustainability of the local hospital and the environment as a whole.
Hospitals have to maintain a temperature of about 22 to 24 degrees Celsius to keep patients warm and safe. Thermostats are essential in different hospitals to ensure that these temperatures are constant. However, since they use too much electricity, it is the responsibility of the hospital to find alternative ways to control the temperatures in the hospital environment. If the temperatures of the surrounding environment are always low, I would advise the local hospital management to insulate the roofing systems. Insulation is a safer way to ensure that the hospital remains sustainable while still ensuring patient safety.
When the local hospital successfully implements these plans, it will save on electricity bills, and other developmental projects can benefit from this money. Furthermore, sustainability initiatives focus on preserving the environment, which means that excessive electricity use will greatly reduce pollution. Thus, we will be saving the environment.
However, not all of these projects are achievable by the hospital as it requires more funds and skills to implement them. The setting of bulbs to dim during daylight is way more realistic than breaking down walls of an already established hospital building to allow natural light. I would advise the hospitable to start with the bulb setting, incorporate the solar systems, roof insulations, and change the building structures according to the department budgets.
Sustainability Initiative
Sustainability initiative focuses on ensuring that the current needs are met without compromising the ability of the future generations so that we can have their needs. Sustainability is driven by its pillars which involve environmental, social, and economic. To have the sustainability initiative succeed in an organization, we have determinants that facilitate its effective performance. Within the organization, we have employees and the top management which drive various responsibilities needed for its success (Sroufe, 2017). Outside the organization, we have a government as well as shareholders who facilitate its performance in several ways. Government regulations should be adhered to effectively.
Effective partnership is very vital for advancing health equity hence shaping community capacity outcomes. A partnership can be either strategic or even get concerned with broad program concept planning, operational, incentives, Communication, or even engagement. A strategic partnership should be person-centred care. It is focused on the relationship between clinicians and consumers hence recognizing the importance of trust and sharing of knowledge that would enhance the best health outcomes (Sroufe, 2017). This will ensure that consumers are encouraged and supported in their care hence making the healthcare facility sustain the competition.
It’s important to offer guidance and advice using evidence-based patient decisions that are tailored to each patient’s specific needs and circumstances. There should be a discussion of each patient’s options to ensure mutual decisions. Giving patients access to their medical reports will encourage patients and families to participate in the sustainable strategy (Lewis et al., 2017). The strategy can be enhanced by the community influential people like church leaders, local businesses, school officials as well as community activists who have got a huge following hence the strategy will be positively received by the community.
There is a need to have online advertisements that would promote health sustainability initiatives by reusing them that would ensure a clean environment. This will involve educating both patients and healthcare employees on the importance of having a clean health facility and its importance to the health of patients, employees, and the community at large. This will involve the use of social media channels as well as other media like television which shall give warning on the effects of keeping dirty environment (Haldane et al., 2019). It will encourage reusing any instrument used in the hospital and use of reusable instruments within the facility.
Storyboard that outlines the advertisement.
Social media is one of the most used platforms made to reach a large number of people in the shortest time possible. This would include Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram, and Twitter. The information shall be designed in a way that will attract the attention of the individuals from the community hence taking the necessary action for effective achievement of the health environment within the healthcare facilities and even in the community. Below are some of the posts designed;
References
Prada, M., Prada, I. F., Cristea, M., Popescu, D. E., Bungău, C., Aleya, L., & Bungău, C. C. (2020). New solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency of buildings of special importance–Hospitals. Science of the Total Environment, 718, 137446.
Rosa, L. P., & Lomardo, L. L. B. (2004). The Brazilian energy crisis and a study to support building efficiency legislation. Energy and Buildings, 36(2), 89-95.
Xu, L., Pan, Y., Yao, Y., Cai, D., Huang, Z., & Linder, N. (2017). Lighting energy efficiency in offices under different control strategies. Energy and Buildings, 138, 127-139.
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