Green Globes for Healthcare

The Green Building Initiative (GBI) recently launched Green Globes Continual Improvement of Existing Buildings (CIEB) for Healthcare, an online self-evaluation tool, rating and certification program for existing hospital and long term care facilities.

Green Globes CIEB for Healthcare is based on the nationally recognized Green Globes environmental evaluation protocol, rating system and certification program for existing buildings. After assessing numerous hospitals using the Green Globes Continual Improvement of Existing Buildings(CIEB) tool, it became apparent that, because of the complexities, regulations and demand for services associated with healthcare facilities, Green Globes CIEB needed to encompass an evaluationquestionnaire that wasspecifically related to healthcare and long term care facilities. To this end, GreenGlobes CIEB for Healthcare was launched in June of 2011. GBI incorporated the input from leading healthcare sustainability experts and its experience in the evaluation, assessment and certification of 21 US Veterans Affairs hospital facilities in a 2009 pilot program in order to develop the new software.

Green Globes CIEB for Healthcare is already proven in real world sustainability practice. The assessment software has been deployed on a broad scale within the public sector. Since the initial pilot project, over 170 Veterans Affairs hospitals and long term care facilities have completed online surveys with the new tool, enabling portfolio-wide comparison and ranking of individual building environmental performance. The VA’s goal over the next year and a half is to move beyond the evaluation process and certify the 170 facilities.

Green Globes CIEB for Healthcare represents a credible and practical means to address environmental assessment, improvement and certification of even the most complex and hospitals and long term care facilities. With this new program, GBI has retained the best elements of the Green Globes system – an intuitive online survey and a cost effective, third- party assessment/certification process. In addition to single buildings, healthcare providers can address sustainable operations and management of entire healthcare campuses and nationwide building portfolios.

The new software enables facility managers to evaluate the environmental performance, operations, and management of an existing hospital or long term care facility. With evaluation criteria and questions tailored to these facility types, credits are awarded based on actual energy consumption as benchmarked by Energy Star, actual water consumption adjusted for the number of inpatient beds in the facility, along with other healthcare specific survey questions. Improvement suggestions for the facility are provided in an automated report.

.

  • Highlights of Green Globes CIEB for Healthcare:
  • Credits are given for good management practices;
  • Energy Performance credits are awarded based on Energy Star rating (campuses or single buildings);
  • A % of points can be given for a partial score; The system rewards hospitals for the things that they do right as well as outlining specific targets for improvement;
  • It is facility based and therefore practical to use;
  • The system takes into account asbestos, lead abatement and mercury issues;
  • Metering of water has been calculated by using sub metering factors i.e. - Analysis: per bed, per gallon, per year.
  • Benefits of Green Globes web-based approach:
  • Electronic survey allows for benchmarking;
  • Gives immediate feedback;
  • Provides recommendations for improvement and guidance for the operation of the building;
  • Allows for working across staff lines and improving communications between departments.
  • In addition to the well-established record with the VA, Green Globes has certified existing buildings for public and private institutions such as Bristol Myers Squib, Pfizer and Medtronic. The National Institutes of Health has recognized it as a system to assess the certify laboratories. It also is written into legislative order in nearly half of the states. Additionally, several major insurance companies give premium discounts on Green Globes certified buildings based on the belief that environmental responsibility often means less risk.

For more information or building applicability to the healthcare module, please visit the GBI site at: or or contact Sharene at (503) 546-2287 or .

4/12/19 Page 1