NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 13, 2010

Elite Environmental Awards Given to Hospital Sisters Health System Hospitals in Eastern Wisconsin

Sheboygan, Wis.—St. Mary's Hospital Medical Center and St.Vincent Hospital in Green Bay and St. Nicholas Hospital—all affiliates of Hospital Sisters Health System, are proud recipients of several prestigious awards from Practice Greenhealth, the nation's only national membership organization for health care facilities and related businesses committed to environmentally responsible operations.

• St. Mary's Hospital Medical Center has again been honored with the highest achievement award presented by Practice Greenhealth -- the Environmental Leadership Circle Award, for the 4th consecutive year. This award is given to fewer than 30 hospitals nationwide. Practice Greenhealth Executive Director Bob Jarboe said, "They are the best of the best, the recipients of our top award. St. Mary's has introduced extensive environmental strategies into health care and is committed to achieving further improvements consistently year after year."

• St. Nicholas Hospital received the "Partner Recognition" award for their work on environmental improvements. The award is one of Practice Greenhealth's environmental Excellence Awards given each year to honor outstanding environmental achievements in the health care sector.

• St. Vincent Hospital was awarded the "Partner for Change with Distinction" award for environmental stewardship for their efforts to protect patient health and preserve the environment. The Partner for Change with Distinction award is a new award given this year recognizing healthcare facilities that continuously improve and expand upon their mercury elimination, waste reduction and pollution prevention programs.

• Hospital Sister Health System, a multi-institutional health care system that sponsors 13 hospitals in 12 communities across Illinois and Wisconsin, was granted the prestigious "System for Change" award. The System for Change award recognizes health systems that are working cohesively to gather data, set system goals, benchmark and share successes in environmental performance.

The Environmental Excellence Awards were presented at the Practice Greenhealth Environmental Excellence Summit during CleanMed, the nation's premier environmental conference for leaders in health care, in Baltimore on May 12.

Therese Pandl, HSHS Divisional President and CEO (Eastern Wisconsin) said, "When you have a Division team in Eastern Wisconsin like ours, it's no surprise St. Mary's, St. Vincent and St. Nicholas hospitals, along with Hospital Sisters Health System, were serious contenders for the Practice Greenhealth, Leadership Circle, Partner for Change, Partner Recognition and System for Change Environmental Excellence Awards. Our Eastern Wisconsin hospitals competed against many other facilities nationwide with excellent programs. We are proud of our team and their commitment to stewardship."

Larry Connors, Chief Operating Officer, St. Mary's Hospital said, "These awards recognize how we embrace the Hospital Sisters Reverence for the Earth and through our ministry of hard work and determination have found ways to protect the environment and the health of patients and families. Through the hospital's Green Team, we are continuing our work to reduce, reuse and recycle to create a better, safer, greener hospital."

Corrine Vercauteren, Director of Environmental Services at St. Mary's Hospital said, "St. Mary's has been working toward a healthier environment for nearly three decades. We are proud of our Leadership Circle status as we have achieved a 42 percent recycle rate overall for the hospital and an 86 percent recycle rate for construction materials during our recent addition to our facility." (These recycle rates greatly exceed the guidelines recommended by Practice Greenhealth.)

Tom Bayer, Chief Operating Officer, St.Vincent Hospital said, "This award inspires us to dig deeper and reach higher to meet our common goals: to reduce health care waste and phase out the use of hazardous materials in our industry. Practice Greenhealth noticed our team and our commitment."

Andrew Bagnall, President and CEO of St. Nicholas Hospital said, "The Partner Recognition award acknowledges environmental improvements and recognizes our achievements of recycling, reduction in waste and reuse rates for the total waste stream. We understand the impact our activities have on the environment and are committed to build on the achievements we have made so far."

Practice Greenhealth is the nation's leading membership and networking organization for institutions in the health care community that have made a commitment to sustainable, eco-friendly practices. Members include hospitals, healthcare systems, businesses and other stakeholders engaged in the greening of healthcare to improve the health of patients, staff and the environment. Practice Greenhealth is a source of environmental solutions for the health care sector.

About St. Nicholas Hospital
St. Nicholas Hospital is the recipient of the 2009/2010 HealthGrades Outstanding Patient Experience Award™. St. Nicholas Hospital is rated among the Nation's top 5% of hospitals for patient experience and one of only 211 facilities in the country to achieve this distinction two years in a row.

St. Nicholas Hospital is a non-profit hospital sponsored by the Hospital Sisters of St. Francis located at 3100 Superior Avenue, Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Their mission and vision is to provide family-centered, compassionate care without regard for race, creed, or ability to pay. This is achieved through the core values of respect, care, competence, and joy.

To learn more, visit www.stnicholashospital.org .

CONTACT: Xue Yang
Marketing Assistant
St. Nicholas Hospital
3100 Superior Avenue
Sheboygan , WI 53081
920-459-4739
xyang@sns.hshs.org

 

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