Hospitals have bright idea as energy improvements save cash and emissions
Energy upgrades across three hospitals are under way – lighting the way for millions of pounds in much-needed savings.
St George’s, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals and Health Group (gesh) has started replacing 45,000 fittings with energy-efficient LED lighting across its sites – a move that will potentially save more than £1m each year in energy costs.
Meanwhile, St George’s is also preparing to install solar panels, which convert sunlight into electricity. That could spark more savings – about £85,000, by the Group’s estimations.
Sixty tonnes of harmful carbon emissions will also be slashed annually, once the panels are installed – or the equivalent of powering 10 houses each year.
The energy-efficient lighting has been funded by a grant from Greener NHS, while the solar panels have been funded by Great British Energy.
Mark Bagnall, Group Chief Officer for Facilities, Infrastructure and Environment, said: “Being more energy-efficient helps us to save money – and that ultimately means we can invest more in our clinical services and improve the care our patients receive.
“We’ve made a good start, but are under no illusion of the challenges ahead as we continue looking at innovative ways to reduce our costs and our carbon footprint.”
The new energy upgrades are the latest in a raft of green initiatives rolled out across the Group in recent months.
They include the successful piloting of “smart theatres” at St George’s, which use real-time environmental monitoring to reduce the number of cancelled operations and save £300,000 a year in energy costs, and replacing up to 50 per cent of animal protein in Epsom and St Helier restaurants with plant-based alternatives to cut 4.53 tonnes of carbon emissions over 14 months.
Meanwhile, South West London Elective Orthopaedic Centre (SWLEOC) – which is based at Epsom Hospital – has saved more than a tonne of emissions, the equivalent of planting 44 trees, by introducing a post-surgery programme where patients record video diaries.
Patients who have had knee and hip operations film the videos once they have been discharged to record their progress, with the clips reviewed by SWLEOC staff. This has reduced the carbon footprint associated with in-person visits.
The NHS was the world’s first health service to commit to reaching carbon net zero, in response to the growing threat to health posed by climate change.
