Synopsis:

The Victorian Government has a legislated target of net carbon zero by 2050 and is seeking to reduce Victoria’s greenhouse gas emissions by 15-20 per cent from 2005 levels by the year 2020.  The Victorian public health system is responsible for a quarter of the government’s reported carbon emissions from stationary energy; over 800,000 tonnes in 2016-17. The environmental performance of the health system is measured through several metrics.

Speakers:

Ms Rachel McConville, Waste Education in Healthcare Officer with the Victorian Health and Human Services Building Authority (VHHSBA) will provide an overview of how the health sector generally and The Royal Children’s Hospital and campus partners can help to achieve an environmentally sustainable healthcare system, in line with the sector-wide strategy for 2018-2023.  Rachel has a background in waste management and behaviour change. She has supported hospitals, schools, businesses and communities throughout Victoria to improve their waste practices through strategic changes that reduce both economic costs and environmental impacts. Rachel has a Masters in Environment from the University of Melbourne and is passionate about helping people understand how they can reduce their environmental footprint.  Rachel’s presentation will be complemented by brief presentations from the following campus representatives:

Laura O’Connor is the NUM of Theatres at RCH. Laura has been a peri-operative nurse for almost 15 years, starting at Northern Health and moving to RCH in 2016. Laura implemented a project charter to introduce recycling and waste streaming in the peri-operative setting at RCH, which delivered a 15 tonne reduction in landfill in a 5 month trial period. These results have been the catalyst for encouraging recycling and waste segregation across RCH.

Ashley Doherty is the Director of Nursing Education at RCH. Ash has a personal interest in Environmental Sustainability. He has worked closely with inpatient wards to minimise waste generation and maximise waste segregation strategies to improve environment sustainability.

Andrew Knox is an MCRI researcher working within the Gastro and Food Allergy Group, within the Population Health Theme at MCRI. Andrew is co-chair of the MCRI Re-(cycle) Committee which initially commenced in 2011 as a staff initiative.  The Sustainability Committee is now a formal environmental consultative committee at MCRI. The Committee has worked tirelessly to implement programs related to more sustainable waste management and waste reduction, and promotional programs aimed at inspiring staff and students to consider their personal footprint and the use of alternative transport. Andrew wants to encourage and enable riding to work, and reducing unnecessary waste through the implementation of simple waste reduction measures.