Irving, TX—Oct. 19, 2011—Novation, the health care supply contracting company for the members of VHA Inc., UHC, and Provista, LLC, announced its support of Practice Greenhealth’s Greening the Supply Chain Initiative and its Standardized Environmental Questions for Medical Products.
Practice Greenhealth’s initiative was launched earlier this year to encourage a market-wide shift to sound environmental practices and provide a common set of tools for health-care stakeholders, including providers, suppliers, manufacturers, and group purchasing organizations, to use and ensure that environmentally preferable products (EPP) remain available, cost competitive and of high quality. The standardized environmental questions provide a key tool in this initiative, and can be used to guide the identification, selection and procurement of environmentally preferable medical products.
The questions were developed and endorsed by Novation, along with four other group purchasing organizations. Additionally, the Board of Directors of the Healthcare Supply Chain Association (HSCA—formerly the Health Industry Group Purchasing Association) recently voted to endorse Practice Greenhealth’s Standardized Environmental Questions for Medical Products.
“We are fully supportive of this initiative and the questionnaire because efforts to reduce a hospital’s environmental footprint can have a direct, positive effect on safety, patient care and health care worker well-being,” said Jennifer Waddell, senior clinical manager, Novation. “Environmentally preferable purchasing leads to multiple benefits for all members of the health care supply chain. With few exceptions, projects that promote sustainable healthcare also save money. And, supporting suppliers who practice sustainable manufacturing perpetuates a culture of responsibility. These new questions provide an excellent tool for all stakeholders.”
Novation has a proven history of supporting environmentally preferable purchasing. Last April, Practice Greenhealth recognized Novation as a Champion for Change award winner for the eighth consecutive year. Additionally, Novation won the Green Supply Chain Award from Supply & Demand Chain Executive magazine in 2010.
