With so much of our history, heritage and livelihood dependent upon the environment, Iowans should be proud of steps taken to protect our natural surroundings, whether it be simply installing long-life, energy-saving light bulbs in our homes or implementing single-stream recycling (a recent addition to IHA’s office complex – the first complex in Des Moines to do so, in fact). 

But other efforts go even further.  Such is the case with Mercy Medical Center-West Lakes in West Des Moines, which last week became the first Iowa hospital built to LEED-certified specifications and recognized as a LEED facility by the U.S. Green Building Council.  LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification is a national program that sets extensive standards for design, construction and operations of buildings. Certification means these aspects of a building have been reviewed and have met these rigorous standards. Among the eco-friendly steps taken by the hospital: 

• A white reflective roof to keep heat out in summer. 
• Three sizes of energy efficient boilers to reduce heating costs. 
• Large windows and skylights that are connected to special sensors that turn off lights in areas when they are not needed. 
• Special water flow technology that reduces usage by 21 percent and plants and grasses that were selected for landscaping based on their lower demands for water. 
• Twenty percent of construction materials came from recycled goods and two-thirds of the hospital’s waste will be recycled. 

Of course, Mercy West Lakes has the advantage of being a brand new hospital (it opened last September).  But hospitals all over Iowa have taken steps to reduce their environmental impact.  For example: 

• Conservation efforts by Iowa Health-Des Moines reduced its paper use by 572 cartons in 2009 compared to the previous year and a program to reprocess and reproduce medical devices kept nearly four tons of waste out of landfills.  By switching from Styrofoam to eco-friendly disposable products, the food and nutrition department saved 7,600 gallons of gasoline, 23,600 pounds of green house gas and 413 trees. 
• Over the past 18 months, St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center in Sioux City has processed and shipped nearly 1,200 pounds of used batteries for recycling, the equivalent of nearly 23,600 AA batteries. To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, new energy efficient heating and cooling systems, boilers with high-tech burners and energy-saving motor control systems have also been added to reduce the hospital’s carbon footprint. 
• Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare-Iowa, which includes Covenant Medical Center in Waterloo, Mercy Hospital in Oelwein and Sartori Memorial Hospital in Cedar Falls, has stepped up its recycling efforts last year and kept nearly 870 tons of material from being dumped into landfills. 
• At Great River Medical Center in West Burlington, 30 percent of the hospital’s total waste in 2009 was recycled, keeping nearly 382,000 pounds of garbage out of the landfill.  In May 2009, the surgical services department began recycling the blue sterile draping used to wrap instruments after they are sterilized. This adds up to 7,800 pounds a year. The department also recycles plastic from surgical prep kits. 

Larger hospitals aren’t the only ones contributing. Orange City Area Health System has implemented several ideas, including switching to “coreless” toilet paper rolls; using more washable glasses, cups and plates; and placing paper recycling bins throughout all facilities and placing more battery recycling receptacles. The hospital also offers cell phone recycling for employees.

Methodist West Hospital in West Des Moines is holding its grand-opening ceremonies this weekend.  The 230,000-square-foot, $118 million hospital sits on 49 acres and includes 95 private beds in its five stories.  The new hospital has six operating rooms, a heart catheterization lab, an endoscopy suite, 12 maternity beds and 13 exam/treatment rooms in its emergency department.  Features around the hospital grounds include a lake, healing garden and outdoor dining. 

Two IHA Associate Members played major roles in Methodist West’s construction:  Shive-Hattery was the project architect and the Weitz Company was the construction manager. 

Staff at Methodist West will officially begin seeing patients on October 26.

As the association representing the interests of Iowa hospitals and health systems, we owe many thanks to the great people keeping these organizations moving.

This week we’d like to congratulate the following individuals on their recent achievements:

• Steve Krob joined Iowa Methodist Occupational Health and Wellness as marketing and sales coordinator.
• Katy Hill, a registered nurse, now serves as emergency medical service coordinator at Iowa Health-Des Moines.
• Dr. Ken Cheyne accepted the role of interim medical director for Blank Children’s Hospital.

Thanks to the Des Moines Register for the notifications.

If you’d like to recognize someone for their achievements (or be recognized for your own) on the IHA blog, send us the details.

The mismatch between the skills required for most jobs and the skills of the U.S. workforce is having a significant impact on all businesses and industries, including the health care sector.

Hospitals need reliable ways to measure foundational skills to ensure they are hiring the most qualified, trainable candidates. ACT, a  not-for-profit organization that provides assessment services in the areas of workforce and education, has two products that fit the bill for hospitals: WorkKeys and the National Career Readiness Certificate.

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