ESG Strategies in Healthcare: A Path to Sustainable Transformation

In recent years, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) initiatives have become increasingly critical – and even legally required – for organizations in all sectors, including healthcare. Given their broad mission of serving the entire community, and their constant interaction with community members of all backgrounds, healthcare organizations are uniquely positioned to lead the charge toward environmentally sustainable practices. These practices are not only important for the organizations themselves, but for the patients, staff and first responders they serve and employ. This blog post explores the importance of implementing and fostering robust ESG strategies in healthcare that focus on environmental sustainability and the role of leveraging technology to achieve these ESG environmental goals.

In this 3-part blog series, we will discuss the impact Healthcare organizations face on their path to building an ESG program starting with the Environmental (E) segment. The series will culminate in a live webinar at the end of October.

The Growing Importance of ESG in Healthcare

Healthcare organizations are under increasing pressure from investors, patients and regulators to address their ESG performance. A recent study by Deloitte found that 85% of healthcare executives believe ESG will be important to their organization’s success over the next three years. This widespread belief is not just rooted compliance, but in their broad mission of serving the community, and the role that environmental compliance plays in creating long-term, sustained and resilient value that aligns with their mission of community service.

Environmental Sustainability in Healthcare

The “E” in ESG stands for Environmental, and it’s an area where healthcare organizations can make a significant impact. Industry studies have shown that the healthcare sector is responsible for 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, highlighting the urgent need for sustainable practices. By adopting, documenting and quantifying sustainable practices such as energy-efficient infrastructure initiatives, waste reduction programs and renewable energy efforts, healthcare organizations can significantly reduce their carbon footprint, contributing to global efforts to lower the sector’s 5% share of greenhouse gas emissions. The good news, as shown in the Deloitte study, is that most healthcare organizations recognize and stand behind this need!

DHHS Sustainability Adaptation Plans

Healthcare organizations are not the only stakeholders to take note of the need to address environmental challenges within the sector. The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), for example, has taken a proactive approach to address these challenges. To this end, in October 2023, the DHHS released its Climate Action Plan, which outlines strategies to reduce the agency’s environmental impact and improve climate resilience in healthcare delivery. Key initiatives include:

1. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions from DHHS facilities and operations
2. Enhancing the climate resilience of healthcare infrastructure
3. Integrating climate considerations into healthcare policies and programs
4. Supporting research on the health impacts of climate change

Healthcare organizations can align their ESG strategies with these DHHS initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, thereby contributing to a more sustainable and resilient healthcare system. Ways they can do so include finding and documenting their efforts at promoting sustainable facility management, enhancing the climate resilience of healthcare infrastructure, integrating climate considerations into their policies and programs and supporting research on the health impacts of climate change. Information governance plays a crucial role in aligning ESG strategies with DHHS initiatives by ensuring that data related to emissions, climate resilience and the health impacts of climate change is accurately managed, securely stored and effectively utilized for informed decision-making and compliance.

Leveraging Technology for ESG Reporting and Performance

To effectively implement, collect data and report on ESG initiatives, healthcare organizations need robust and suitable technological and records management solutions. Here are some key considerations:

Data Collection and Analysis

Healthcare organizations must collect and analyze vast amounts of data from various sources to measure their ESG performance. A study by KPMG found that executives believe ESG data collection and reporting is a significant challenge, with 83% anticipating an increase in the ESG integration across roles.

To address reporting challenges, organizations should consider implementing:

1. Automated data capture solutions: These can pull data from multiple sources, including electronic health records, facility management systems and supply chain databases.
2. Data analytics platforms: Advanced analytics tools can help organizations process and interpret large volumes of ESG-related data, enabling more informed decision-making.

Centralized ESG Management

A centralized system for managing that uses robust data integration platforms that can:

• Unify data from disparate systems, electronic records management systems
• Help to securely store, organize, and retrieve critical compliance records related to ESG initiatives
• Help healthcare organizations track progress, ensure compliance and streamline reporting

Case management solutions can be adapted for this purpose, allowing teams to:

1. Aggregate relevant data from across the organization
2. Track ESG-related projects and initiatives
3. Generate reports for internal and external stakeholders

Ensuring Data Accuracy and Transparency

As scrutiny of ESG claims increases, healthcare organizations must ensure the accuracy and transparency of their reporting. Technology can play a crucial role in this:

1. Blockchain for data verification: Blockchain technology can provide an immutable record of ESG data, enhancing trust and transparency.
2. AI-powered auditing tools: These can help identify discrepancies or potential issues in ESG data, reducing the risk of unintentional misreporting.

Information Governance Strategies

In addition to implementing the “right” technologies, healthcare organizations should ensure that their organizational practices align with the goals of ESG-reporting frameworks and the need for organizations seeking to quantify their ESG efforts to have the right information at the right time.

Information-governance best practices such as ensuring records that have met their retention period are expunged, managing ESG documentation using metadata classification to help ensure that ESG reporting information can be found quickly, auditing data management practices and regular records management training are critical to these efforts.

Particularly important is the need to ensure that ESG data is accurately captured, securely stored and appropriately archived or disposed of at the end of its useful life. This reduces the burden of ROT data, lowers storage costs and ensures that only relevant, up-to-date data is available for decision-making and reporting.

Conclusion

As healthcare organizations in the United States navigate the complex landscape of ESG, technology will play a pivotal role in driving success. By leveraging advanced data collection, analysis and management tools, healthcare providers can not only meet regulatory requirements, but also lead the way in creating a more sustainable and equitable healthcare system.

The journey toward ESG excellence is ongoing, but the right strategies and technological support, healthcare organizations can make a significant positive impact on their communities and the planet.

If you are interested in learning more about how your organization can navigate the complexities of SB 253 and enhance its ESG strategies, please reach out! Together, we can explore actionable steps to improve sustainability and compliance in your healthcare operations.