PROMOTING SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES IN HEALTHCARE FACILITIES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
Main Article Content
Keywords
Abstract
The increasing climate catastrophe presents major risks to healthcare systems globally, impacting their ability to protect patients from climate-related dangers. Healthcare facilities are important in dealing with the effects of climate change, but they may also produce greenhouse gas emissions while delivering necessary treatment and services. This research seeks to assess existing practices, identify obstacles to adoption, and provide solutions for enhancement to encourage sustainable practices for improved environmental health in healthcare facilities. A quantitative study method was used, which included surveying facility managers, healthcare experts, and environmental health specialists from 100 healthcare organizations. The results indicated a favorable view towards sustainability efforts, with a widespread agreement on the importance of sustainability in the work environment. The examination of questionnaire answers revealed information on workers' understanding, dedication, and behaviors concerning energy efficiency, water conservation, waste management, sustainable procurement, and staff training. The research adds to the current body of knowledge by investigating the relationships among sustainability empowerment, green human resource management, and workers' green activities in the healthcare industry. The findings emphasize the significance of promoting sustainability-focused behaviors, ensuring organizational policies and procedures are in line with sustainability objectives, and offering sufficient training and assistance to staff. The results provide important insights for healthcare organizations aiming to improve their environmental sustainability and support the overarching objective of universal health coverage.
Downloads
References
1. Alberdi, G., & Begiristain-Zubillaga, M. (2021). The promotion of sustainable diets in the healthcare system and implications for health professionals: a scoping review. Nutrients, 13(3), 747. 2. Ammann, J., Arbenz, A., Mack, G., Nemecek, T., & El Benni, N. (2023). A review on policy instruments for sustainable food consumption. Sustainable Production and Consumption. 3. Antasouras, G., Vasios, G. K., Kontogiorgis, C., Ioannou, Z., Poulios, E., Deligiannidou, G. E., ... & Giaginis, C. (2023). How to improve food waste management in hospitals through focussing on the four most common measures for reducing plate waste. The International Journal of Health Planning and Management, 38(2), 296-316. 4. Byrne, K. A., & Zabetakis, I. (2023). Farm to Fork: Balancing the Needs for Sustainable Food Production and Food for Health Promotion. Sustainability, 15(4), 3396. 5. Change, I. C. (2014). Impacts, adaptation and vulnerability. Part A: global and sectoral aspects. Contribution of working group II to the fifth assessment report of the intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 1132. 6. Chreif, M., & Farmanesh, P. (2022). Applying Green Human Resource Practices toward Sustainable Workplace: A Moderated Mediation Analysis. Sustainability, 14(15), 9250. 7. Corvalan, C., Villalobos Prats, E., Sena, A., Campbell-Lendrum, D., Karliner, J., Risso, A., ... & Vinci, S. (2020). Towards climate resilient and environmentally sustainable health care facilities. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(23), 8849. 8. El Bilali, H., Callenius, C., Strassner, C., & Probst, L. (2019). Food and nutrition security and sustainability transitions in food systems. Food and energy security, 8(2), e00154. 9. Field, C. B. (Ed.). (2012). Managing the risks of extreme events and disasters to advance climate change adaptation: special report of the intergovernmental panel on climate change. Cambridge University Press. 10. Foster, B., Muhammad, Z., Yusliza, M. Y., Faezah, J. N., Johansyah, M. D., Yong, J. Y., ... & Fawehinmi, O. (2022). Determinants of pro-environmental behaviour in the workplace. Sustainability, 14(8), 4420. 11. Guillaumie, L., Boiral, O., Baghdadli, A., & Mercille, G. (2020). Integrating sustainable nutrition into health-related institutions: a systematic review of the literature. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 111, 845-861. 12. Harrach, C., Geiger, S., & Schrader, U. (2020, December). Sustainability empowerment in the workplace: determinants and effects. In Sustainability Management Forum| NachhaltigkeitsManagementForum (Vol. 28, pp. 93-107). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. 13. Khamdamov, A., Tang, Z., & Hussain, M. A. (2023). Unpacking parallel mediation processes between green HRM practices and sustainable environmental performance: evidence from Uzbekistan. Sustainability, 15(2), 1434. 14. Kruk, M. E., Myers, M., Varpilah, S. T., & Dahn, B. T. (2015). What is a resilient health system? Lessons from Ebola. The Lancet, 385(9980), 1910-1912. 15. Kutzin, J., & Sparkes, S. P. (2016). Health systems strengthening, universal health coverage, health security and resilience. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 94(1), 2. 16. Norton, T. A., Zacher, H., Parker, S. L., & Ashkanasy, N. M. (2017). Bridging the gap between green behavioral intentions and employee green behavior: The role of green psychological climate. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 38(7), 996-1015. 17. Prosen, M., Lekše, R., & Ličen, S. (2023). Health Professionals’ Role in Promoting Health and Environmental Sustainability through Sustainable Food Advocacy: A Systematic Literature Review. Sustainability, 15(18), 13651. 18. World Health Organization. (2014). Health systems for health and wealth in the context of Health 2020: follow-up meeting on the 2008 Tallinn Charter: Tallinn, Estonia, 17–18 October 2013 (No. WHO/EURO: 2014-2231-41986-57745). World Health Organization. Regional Office for Europe. 19. World Health Organization. (2015). Operational framework for building climate resilient health systems. World Health Organization. Available online: https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/189951/9789241565073_eng.pdf (accessed on 19 October 2020). 20. World Health Organization. (2019). Health emergency and disaster risk management framework. 21. Pais, D. F., Marques, A. C., & Fuinhas, J. A. (2023). How to Promote Healthier and More Sustainable Food Choices: The Case of Portugal. Sustainability, 15(4), 3868.
Article Sidebar
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Transfer of Copyright and Permission to Reproduce Parts of Published Papers.
Authors retain the copyright for their published work. No formal permission will be required to reproduce parts (tables or illustrations) of published papers, provided the source is quoted appropriately and reproduction has no commercial intent. Reproductions with commercial intent will require written permission and payment of royalties.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.