Waste management
Netcare has, for several years, implemented systems which ensure that healthcare risk waste (HCRW) is managed according to the applicable legislative requirements so as to protect staff members and the public from any form of risk. In 2016, Netcare initiated a national project to segregate waste more effectively and to reduce the HCRW produced by its operations. A baseline data set was established and a steady improvement has since been recorded, especially across sites with higher HCRW volumes.
Netcare’s goal is to integrate all waste streams into an integrated waste management solution and to convert waste streams to value streams by diverting waste that can be recycled and re-used from landfill sites, as well as by implementing waste to fuel, energy or fertiliser conversions on the basis of investment in enterprise development projects. The complete solution is expected to take three to five years to implement, and could potentially reduce Netcare’s spend on waste by as much as 38%.
We have a focused drive to improve awareness and management of waste segregation to reduce the environmental impact of medical waste, which includes waste dashboards to communicate with facilities on their performance against set targets. The dashboards give facilities the opportunity to benchmark themselves against other facilities in the network, and shared solutions to improve performance are managed centrally. Pleasingly, the initial results indicate an 11% reduction in HCRW.
Our environmentally-friendly new hospitals
All new Netcare facilities are being developed using environmentally sustainable principles as an integral part of their design.
The new Netcare Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital, which opened in December 2016, has numerous green and sustainable concepts incorporated in its design. These include grey water harvesting; an intelligent façade assisting in insulating the inside from the outside to lower heating, air conditioning and ventilation requirements and costs; efficient lighting; regenerating lifts; and harvesting waste heat from the chillers.
The areas of success in our new building projects are incorporated as standard design protocols and will be included with further technological advances in future new-builds and renovation or expansion projects.
Netcare Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital
State-of-the-art green technology incorporated at Netcare Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital which opened in December 2016..
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Netcare Pholoso Hospital
Green principles in hospital design integrate patient comfort and sustainable utilities management
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Netcare Pinehaven Hospital
Healing and environmental principles entrenched in new hospital design.
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External recognition for environmental programmes
In 2018, Netcare received four Climate Championship Awards – two gold and two silver awards – stemming from our participation in the international 2020 Health Care Climate Challenge organised by Global Green Healthy Hospitals (GGHH). Globally, this achievement has only been equalled by one other organisation, namely Dignity Health based in the United States.
The 2020 Health Climate Challenge was launched at the Paris Climate Conference in 2015, and Netcare was one of five founding participants in Africa. There are currently 163 member participants in the 2020 Challenge, representing the interests of more than 14 000 hospitals and health centres in 24 countries.