ANA Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation® Blog: 5 Ways to Create an Eco-Friendly Work Environment
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Small changes have a big impact on environmental health
The relationship between the environment and human health has become increasingly apparent. So has the role of nurses in reducing the impact of climate change.
According to ANA’s Code of Ethics, nurses are expected to work with the global health community to “promote human and environmental health, well-being, and flourishing.” They should participate in activities that support environmental health through policy and program development, research, and political engagement. As advocates for an environmentally friendly society, nurses address health determinants that can have a powerful effect on people’s health outcomes.
As a caregiver, advocate, educator, and role model, you’re in a unique position. Your connection with patients and interaction with medical supplies and waste give you a wider reach than you may realize. The challenge is that sustainability, no matter how well-intentioned, often gets set aside due to immediate patient care demands — unless you have a plan.
Whether you are searching for small ways to become environmentally friendly or looking to make a larger impact in your workplace, here are 5 areas where you can make a difference:
Learning alongside others and sharing what you learn can help cement your knowledge. Creating an environmental health action group at work can raise awareness and provide a space to keep the conversation going. Take a closer look at the environmental health of your workplace by assessing the sustainability and green practices you already use. The tool from ANHE will help you know where there are gaps you can help fill.
You can make environmentally friendly choices — and set an example for others — by using a reusable water bottle, straws, food storage, and tote bags. Even one small change can have a significant impact. The average person uses more than 150 plastic water bottles per year, and only 23% of them are recycled. The rest end up in the ocean or landfills, where they leak harmful pollutants into our water.
As a nurse, you also have the power to initiate large-scale change in your workplace. Hospitals generate nearly 30 pounds of waste per bed per day. Speak with your organization’s leadership and infection control to see if reusable gowns or medical products are possible.
Need inspiration? At a hospital in California, nurses realized their liver transplant unit was using more than 1,000 disposable isolation gowns every day. Providers, staff members, and visitors were required to wear a new gown each time they entered a patient room. So, they started a pilot program using reusable isolation gowns. The successful initiative was later adopted by the hospital. In just 3 years, the program diverted nearly 300 tons of waste from landfills.
An easy way to introduce environmental health within a clinic or facility is to put a “green tip of the day” on whiteboards. You can also talk to your manager about adding environmental health posters and information to waiting areas and patient rooms so they can learn while on property.
Taking a minute to return unused items to inventory — when appropriate, legal, and within facility infection control policies — can avoid unnecessary water use and trash. When transferring patients, check the cabinets to ensure that appropriate unused supplies go with the patient. That way, those supplies have a better chance of being used instead of discarded.
Ask whether your organization participates in a donation program for unused items that cannot be restocked. If so, help spread the word, so other nurses understand the process. If there is no program in place, can you start one?
Electricity is necessary for patient care, of course. But look around, and you may notice how often electricity is being used when it’s not needed. Small changes that can help include:
Taking the Next Step to Improve Environmental Health
Making eco-friendly changes within your life and work environment is a critical first step for all nurses. Need some inspiration? Read the spotlights of nurses who advocate and act for environmental health:
If you are ready to look beyond your work environment and impact change on a larger scale, consider getting involved as an advocate for policy change.
How do you make your workplace more environmentally friendly? Share with us in our discussion below.
Not a member of Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation (HNHN) yet? Join today!
Join our monthly challenges at hnhn.org/challenges!
According to ANA’s Code of Ethics, nurses are expected to work with the global health community to “promote human and environmental health, well-being, and flourishing.” They should participate in activities that support environmental health through policy and program development, research, and political engagement. As advocates for an environmentally friendly society, nurses address health determinants that can have a powerful effect on people’s health outcomes.
As a caregiver, advocate, educator, and role model, you’re in a unique position. Your connection with patients and interaction with medical supplies and waste give you a wider reach than you may realize. The challenge is that sustainability, no matter how well-intentioned, often gets set aside due to immediate patient care demands — unless you have a plan.
Whether you are searching for small ways to become environmentally friendly or looking to make a larger impact in your workplace, here are 5 areas where you can make a difference:
- Educate Yourself (and Your Coworkers) About Environmental Health
Learning alongside others and sharing what you learn can help cement your knowledge. Creating an environmental health action group at work can raise awareness and provide a space to keep the conversation going. Take a closer look at the environmental health of your workplace by assessing the sustainability and green practices you already use. The tool from ANHE will help you know where there are gaps you can help fill.
- Reduce Single Use
You can make environmentally friendly choices — and set an example for others — by using a reusable water bottle, straws, food storage, and tote bags. Even one small change can have a significant impact. The average person uses more than 150 plastic water bottles per year, and only 23% of them are recycled. The rest end up in the ocean or landfills, where they leak harmful pollutants into our water.
As a nurse, you also have the power to initiate large-scale change in your workplace. Hospitals generate nearly 30 pounds of waste per bed per day. Speak with your organization’s leadership and infection control to see if reusable gowns or medical products are possible.
Need inspiration? At a hospital in California, nurses realized their liver transplant unit was using more than 1,000 disposable isolation gowns every day. Providers, staff members, and visitors were required to wear a new gown each time they entered a patient room. So, they started a pilot program using reusable isolation gowns. The successful initiative was later adopted by the hospital. In just 3 years, the program diverted nearly 300 tons of waste from landfills.
- Promote Eco-Conscious Behaviors in Your Patients
- Eco-friendly tips about disposing of medication and using green cleaners
- Discussions focused on air quality
- Helping patients prepare for extreme weather and natural disasters
- Information about air pollution and pregnancy
An easy way to introduce environmental health within a clinic or facility is to put a “green tip of the day” on whiteboards. You can also talk to your manager about adding environmental health posters and information to waiting areas and patient rooms so they can learn while on property.
- Watch Your Waste
Taking a minute to return unused items to inventory — when appropriate, legal, and within facility infection control policies — can avoid unnecessary water use and trash. When transferring patients, check the cabinets to ensure that appropriate unused supplies go with the patient. That way, those supplies have a better chance of being used instead of discarded.
Ask whether your organization participates in a donation program for unused items that cannot be restocked. If so, help spread the word, so other nurses understand the process. If there is no program in place, can you start one?
- Conserve Energy
Electricity is necessary for patient care, of course. But look around, and you may notice how often electricity is being used when it’s not needed. Small changes that can help include:
- Managing natural light by opening blinds when appropriate to reduce the amount of electric light needed and closing them in the heat of the day to keep rooms cooler
- Powering down electronic devices or putting them in standby mode when not in use, if appropriate
- Reporting building malfunctions, including drafts, leaky pipes, or broken thermostats
- Turning off lights and equipment in empty rooms, if appropriate
Taking the Next Step to Improve Environmental Health
Making eco-friendly changes within your life and work environment is a critical first step for all nurses. Need some inspiration? Read the spotlights of nurses who advocate and act for environmental health:
If you are ready to look beyond your work environment and impact change on a larger scale, consider getting involved as an advocate for policy change.
How do you make your workplace more environmentally friendly? Share with us in our discussion below.
Not a member of Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation (HNHN) yet? Join today!
Join our monthly challenges at hnhn.org/challenges!
Blog Quality of Life
09/16/2025 12:10pm CDT
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