October 27, 2005
UWMC wins Governor’s Award
UW Medical Center is a recipient of the 2005 Governor’s Award for Pollution Prevention & Sustainable Practices, the state’s highest honor for taking care of the environment while doing business in Washington.
UWMC is the first hospital in the state to receive the award.
The awards recognize businesses and others who have found innovative ways to offer services and make products while reducing or eliminating hazardous waste and conserving vital resources such as energy and water.
This is the second consecutive year that a UW department has received the award. In 2004, the UW Motor Pool was honored. Past winners also include UW Environmental Health and Safety.
The winners were honored for business practices that are “sustainable” — that is, they support the vitality of the economy, the environment and the community. Tom Fitzsimmons, Gov. Christine Gregoire’s chief of staff, and Jay Manning, the Department of Ecology director, presented the awards in a ceremony last month in Olympia attended by representatives of UWMC and Environmental Health and Safety.
The medical center has virtually eliminated its use of mercury and switched to a less toxic chemical for cold-chemical disinfection.
It has cut water use by installation of a recycling system at Consolidated Laundry and by implementing a linen usage reduction program.
The Environmental Services department is changing to a floor-mopping system that will cut disinfectant water use by 80 percent.
By retrofitting and replacing older equipment, the medical center’s Operations and Maintenance department cut electricity use by 3 million kilowatt hours per year.
Regulated medical waste fell from 950,000 pounds in 2002 to 664,570 pounds in 2004. Operating room waste dropped by 27 percent.
In addition, the Medical Center’s purchasing system is designed to make sure all supplies, services and technology support both high-quality patient care and environmental protection.
