Our commitment to sustainable healthcare
A healthier planet means healthier people!
As a region we are focused on preventing ill-health and improving the overall health of communities with NHS organisations, and our partners, working together to deliver our ambition to be the greenest region in England by 2030.
Being sustainable is not just good for the environment, it’s also an important driver of health.
The climate crisis is one of the biggest health challenges we face and failing to reduce our impact on the planet will have serious implications for both the physical and mental health of our communities.
As one of the largest organisations in the world, the NHS has a crucial part to play.
Through our size and scale we can make a positive contribution to the health of our communities by reducing our environmental impact.
We are already taking-action to reduce our environmental footprint from how we are reducing waste, supporting active travel, using electric vehicles, re-thinking our supply chain and switching to more sustainable products, with all NHS Trusts now having their own Green Plans in place.
Find out more about the fantastic work being done across our region to improve patient care and community wellbeing whilst tacking climate change and sustainability issues.
Our ambition to become England's greenest region by 2030
As a health and care system we are committed to developing a consistent approach with our partners in the public and voluntary sectors to sustainability, recycling, improving air quality and carbon reduction, as well as increasing access to green spaces. We have joined a cross-sector coalition working to enable our region to become England’s greenest region by 2030.
Faculty of Sustainable Healthcare
The North East is the first region in the country to have a faculty dedicated to environmental sustainability in healthcare. The Faculty of Sustainable Healthcare, which is run by Health Education England North East (HEE NE), aims to increase awareness of sustainability and embedding good practice across the local area, helping organisations achieve climate impact reduction targets.