Northern Trust leading the way to greener future for health service

A pilot project in the Northern Health and Social Care Trust is leading the way in helping to create a greener, more sustainable health service for future generations.

In a first for Northern Ireland, operating theatres in Antrim Area Hospital are using portable cylinders for anaesthesia in a move that is significantly reducing the theatres’ carbon footprint.

Paddy Graffin, Director of Infrastructure with the Northern Trust, said the new approach allowed theatres to use the exact amount of gas (nitrous oxide) required, rather than relying on a central supply system that can result in significant wastage.

“Essentially, it’s allowing us to operate the gas supply like a tap that can be turned on and off, using only what is needed, rather than having a central supply that is servicing all theatres and is inevitably going to produce more gas than is used,” explained Paddy.

“Several global studies have shown that transitioning from a central manifold system and its extensive pipework infrastructure, to having portable cylinders in each theatre, drastically reduces the amount of wastage. This is good news for the environment and also in terms of us delivering value, through a much more efficient use of resources.”

The next phase of the project will see portable cylinders rolled out to the Trust’s operating theatres in Causeway, Whiteabbey and Mid Ulster hospitals, which will eventually allow the central manifold supply to be decommissioned.

The N2O project is the latest in a number of green initiatives that the Trust has been progressing over the last two years.

Last year saw the completion of a 1.2MW solar roof installation at Causeway Hospital - the largest solar PV (photovoltaic) roof installation in any health and social care setting in Northern Ireland, and one of the largest rooftop installations on the island of Ireland.

Solar panel schemes have also been rolled out across five other Trust sites, along with new energy-efficient boilers.

Steven Johnston, Northern Trust Assistant Director of Estates, said: “Solar energy provides our health estate with renewable electricity whilst also reducing our running costs so it’s a win-win.

“It’s a cleaner, greener, more efficient way of delivering essential services for our community, and we’re really proud that our Estates department is leading in the field of sustainability.

“Our Energy Team is very ambitious. We are constantly on the lookout for new opportunities and new technologies for reducing the carbon footprint and energy consumption within the Trust.”

The Trust established its internal Sustainability Group two years ago, bringing a renewed focus to identifying and promoting projects and practices across the organisation that will help to drive sustainability and create a more resilient healthcare system for generations to come.

“When we talk about healthcare, people tend to think of just our hospital buildings, but actually there is a huge health estate that Trusts are responsible for,” Director, Paddy Graffin added.

“It’s important that we are continually reviewing our estate to identify how we can make efficiencies and improvements, and sustainability is a big focus within our Corporate Plan.

“We know the financial pressures facing health and social care at the moment, so our Delivering Value agenda has never been more important.”

A number of other initiatives are underway as part of the Trust’s commitment to sustainability, including a successful ‘offensive’ waste segregation project that has resulted in a 128 tonne reduction of clinical waste across the Trust, and savings of more than £53,000.

Other projects include polypropylene recycling pilot project among Antrim Area Hospital’s theatre staff, exploring the use of geothermal energy to reduce the Trust’s carbon footprint and exploring the potential of water boreholes.

Exploring the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) with respect to building data analytics to ensure optimum performance of estates buildings & equipment, improving decision making and identifying new opportunities for efficiency and the associated cost and carbon reduction are also being piloted.