By Dan Hounsell, Senior Editor

For facility managers seeking to minimize the impact of their buildings and operations on the environment, few elements of achieving sustainability goals are more important than having support within their organizations. This support eases the way for innovations, policies and procedures that create more sustainable facilities by reducing waste and water use, adopting green building features, protecting facilities from extreme weather damage and converting to renewable energy. 

For managers in healthcare facilities, buy-in from frontline healthcare workers — nurses, physicians assistants, nurse practitioners, primary care physicians, and specialists — is especially critical. Now, managers have that support. A new survey from the Commonwealth Fund finds that U.S. healthcare workers support their employers’ efforts to address climate change and sustainability. Among the survey’s findings: 

• About four in five clinicians surveyed believe it is important for their hospitals to address climate change and that doing this is aligned with their organization’s mission. 
• Three in four clinicians surveyed say it is important that they themselves work to reduce their environmental impact at work and at home. 
• Respondents working in leadership positions reported that most hospitals are increasingly undertaking climate mitigation initiatives, such as reducing energy consumption (69 percent) and waste (76 percent) or setting emissions targets (35 percent). 
• About 6 in 10 clinicians say a prospective employer’s policies and actions on climate change would impact their decision to apply for a job. 

Dan Hounsell is senior editor for the facilities market. He has more than 30 years of experience writing about facilities maintenance, engineering and management.