UVM Medical Center
Newsroom

UVM Medical Center Named One of the Greenest Hospitals in the US

Burlington, VT

Published
UVM Medical Center

The University of Vermont Medical Center is one of 25 hospitals to be honored this year for Environmental Excellence by Practice Greenhealth, a leading national advocate for sustainable practices in health care.

The Top 25 Environmental Excellence Award, Practice Greenhealth’s highest honor for hospitals, recognizes efforts to address links between the environment and human health, use data to demonstrate successes, and show leadership in their local communities and across the health care sector.

Additionally, The UVM Medical Center’s main campus received a “Circles of Excellence” award from Practice Greenhealth for Leadership and Healthy Food. The Fanny Allen Inpatient Rehabilitation facility in Colchester received a Circles of Excellence award for Healthy Food.

The Leadership category honors hospitals demonstrating excellence in supporting a long-term commitment to healthier environments through committee structure, reporting, data tracking, communication, and education. The Healthy Food category highlights leaders in sustainable nutrition services, including meat and sugar-sweetened beverage reduction, healthier meat procurement, local sourcing, food waste prevention and management.

The Greening the OR Leadership Award was also presented to UVM Medical Center. It recognizes facilities demonstrating the most success in reducing the environmental impact of surgical suites.

Finally, Fanny Allen earned the Greenhealth Emerald Award for eliminating mercury, reducing and recycling waste, and sustainable sourcing.

The UVM Medical Center has been recognized by Practice Greenhealth and other national organizations for many years for its commitment to environmentally responsible practices. UVM Medical Center has sought to engage its employees in making personal commitments to help mitigate climate change. In 2018, UVM Medical Center undertook the following efforts:

  • Installed additional LED lighting and high-performance pumps throughout the facility;
  • Supported Greenride Bikeshare which has helped reduce carbon emissions by 19,271 pounds since February;
  • Constructed the Miller Building, a 128-bed unit that has a LEED certification pending;
  • Launched the Go Green, Save Green Challenge that distributed LED bulbs, competed in the Northwest Earth Institute EcoChallenge, included a sustainability fair, and offered a free public class about home efficiency.

“It’s an honor to again be recognized by Practice Green Health for our continuing efforts. We have a reputation for environmental excellence that we’re proud of, and strive to improve it each year,” said Dawn LeBaron, vice president of Hospital Services. “Our employees are leading the way and are committed to a culture focused on sustainable and responsible practices in the health care field.”

To learn more, visit the Environmental Leadership section of the UVM Medical Center website. It includes information on programs devoted to serving healthy food, reducing waste, and limiting the use of chemicals.

About Practice Greenhealth

Practice Greenhealth is the source for environmental solutions for the healthcare sector and lends support to create better, safer, greener workplaces and communities. Practice Greenhealth is a nonprofit membership organization founded on the principles of positive environmental stewardship and best practices by organizations in the healthcare community.  Visit practicegreenhealth.org for more information.

About the University of Vermont Medical Center

The University of Vermont Medical Center  is a 447-bed tertiary care regional referral center providing advanced care to approximately 1 million residents in Vermont and northern New York.  Together with our partners at the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont and the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, we are Vermont’s academic medical center. The University of Vermont Medical Center also serves as a community hospital for approximately 150,000 residents in Chittenden and Grand Isle counties. 

 

The University of Vermont Medical Center is a member of The University of Vermont Health Network, an integrated system established to deliver high quality academic medicine to every community we serve.

For more information visitt our Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and blog sites at UVMHealth.org/MedCenterSocialMedia.

award logo