Four HealthPartners hospitals named among 60 Greenest Hospitals in America

Bloomington, Minn. – Becker’s Hospital Review has named Regions Hospital, Methodist Hospital, Lakeview Hospital and Hudson Hospital & Clinic among its 60 Greenest Hospitals in America.

All four HealthPartners hospitals were recognized for their commitment to sustainability.

The hospitals featured on the Becker’s list embrace ways to reduce their environmental footprint in the community.

“We’re very proud to be recognized for the work we’re doing to support cleaner, healthier communities, but that’s not why we do it,” said Dana Slade, HealthPartners director of sustainability programs. “We’re honoring our mission to improve health and well-being in partnership with those we serve through our commitment to sustainability and cost effective, long-term green business practices that save money as well as improve the environment.”

To compile the list, the Becker's editorial team considered nominations and conducted editorial research, looking at awards won from Practice Greenhealth, the U.S. Green Building Council, the American Society for Healthcare Engineering, and the Environmental Protection Agency.

In May, HealthPartners and six of our hospitals received a total 18 environmental excellence awards from Practice Greenhealth, the nation’s leading organization dedicated to environmental sustainability in health care. Hudson Hospital & Clinic, Regions Hospital and Methodist Hospital were named among the top 25 hospitals in the U.S. for environmental stewardship in health care. Lakeview Hospital received the Greenhealth Emerald and Greening the OR awards.

Across HealthPartners, there’s considerable work going on to reduce the organization’s impact on the environment. For example:

• Energy efficiency savings: We’ve been working hard to update our lights and other utilities to be more earth-friendly. At Regions Hospital, timed lights turn on only when needed. And, they use 70 percent less energy.
• Buying local: Buying food from our local organizations not only supports our economy, but also reduces energy used to transport our food. Our partnership with Urban Organics brings fresh greens grown in St. Paul to our St. Croix Valley area hospitals. And, it’s all grown through aquaponics farming.
• Improving our surrounding environments: The buzz is all about the on-site honey bee colonies at Hudson Hospital & Clinic. You might see monarchs at Amery Hospital & Clinic. They are a certified Monarch Way station.