SHELTON, WA – A focus on more sustainable operations supports healthier patients, staff, and communities.

In recognition for its achievement and innovation in health care sustainability, Mason Health received the 2022 Partner for Change Environmental Excellence Award from Practice Greenhealth, the nation’s leading organization dedicated to environmental sustainability in health care. This is the second year that Mason Health has earned an Environmental Excellence Award.

The award recognizes Mason Health’s ongoing commitment to improving environmental performance and our efforts to build sustainability into the operations and culture of our institution.

“In a shifting health care landscape, a focus on sustainability can help build resilience while better protecting the health of patients and the community,” said Gary Cohen, Practice Greenhealth founder. “Mason Health demonstrates the kind of leadership, innovation, and performance that can drive the entire health sector toward more environmentally responsible practices.”

Mason Health is the first of the Washington Rural Health Collaborative to join Practice Greenhealth. Within two years of joining the organization, the District has already emerged as a leader in sustainability efforts in the region — in May, Mason Health was recognized at the national CleanMed Gala in Kansas City, as an example of resilience and environmental stewardship in health care. The CleanMed Gala is presented by Health Care Without Harm, an international coalition promoting environmentally responsible health care, and Practice Greenhealth. In 2022, Mason Health also earned its first ENERGYSTAR rating.

“We are making huge strides and big, operational changes,” said Mason Health Chief Development & Communications Officer Jennifer Capps. “I am really stoked about all of the work that our departments are doing and the accomplishments achieved.”

Mason Health departments work closely together to reach sustainability goals. One striking example of that is the ongoing effort to reprocess single-use surgical items through Stryker’s Sustainability Solutions. Starting in 2021, Mason Health surgical teams have been trained to recycle Stryker products, which the Environmental Services (EVS) Department collects so that the Supply Chain Department can return those items to Stryker for reprocessing.

“When we buy those items back, we buy them back at 50 to 60 percent of the price,” said Sean Hazlett, Mason Health’s Director of Supply Chain. “It’s a considerable savings for the organization and it is reducing the amount of waste ending up in a landfill. We have a high rate of collection because the EVS team has done a phenomenal job.”

EVS works hard to procure Green Seal certified cleaning products, said EVS Manager Trevor Madison. The department saw a reduction in landfill waste in 2021. Looking ahead, the department plans to have more recycle bins in patient rooms.

“The beauty of Practice Greenhealth is that it has opened up our eyes,” Madison said. “Our systems were terrific in the first place and we were already there, doing this work, we just didn’t know it. We can always improve. I am truly proud of what we have done without even knowing it.”

The Partner for Change award is one of Practice Greenhealth’s Environmental Excellence Awards given annually to honor health care’s achievements in sustainability.

Practice Greenhealth is the leading membership and networking organization for sustainable health care, delivering environmental solutions to more than 1,400 U.S. hospitals and health systems. Learn more at practicegreenhealth.org.

Mason Health, Public Hospital District No. 1 of Mason County, is ISO 9001 Quality Management System certified by Det Norske Veritas (DNV) and is a licensed and accredited acute care hospital with a level four emergency trauma designation. Mason General Hospital and Mason Clinic are ENERGY STAR® certified and Mason Health is the recipient of Practice Greenhealth Partner for Change Environmental Excellence Awards. There are more than 100 physicians on staff in 19 specialties. For more information or to find a health care provider, visit www.masongeneral.com.