Supporting a green and just transition for NHS Scotland

Another Event
Next Generation Design Challenge, Judging Panel Announced
Design Sprint 3 – Create
Green Futures Storytelling and Design Policy Interface
Day 3 of Engineering the Future for Girls

The Green Ward Toolkit

The Green Ward toolkit aims to guide hospital staff, providing tools and education to empower them in implementing new sustainable practices.

About the Project

NHS staff have a key role in achieving Net Zero for NHS Scotland. Through a pop-up installation to engage staff in Ninewells Hospital, Tayside, early research reveals that while staff practice sustainability at home or can see why Net Zero is important for the NHS, they are uncertain about the best ways to direct their efforts in the workplace.

The Green Ward Toolkit aims to guide hospital staff, providing tools and education to empower them in implementing new sustainable practices. Our research is underpinned by a design-led approach where the involvement of successive and iterative stages is required in designing an effective Green Ward Toolkit. By integrating design experts with healthcare professionals in the development of the toolkit, it is anticipated that strong support for NHS staff will naturally emerge. Anticipated benefits include environmental and social benefits, enhanced patient outcomes, and economic long-term savings. The penultimate goal is to extend the engagement process for Net Zero objectives by 2040.

The toolkit will serve as a crucial guide to educate and empower healthcare workers, helping them integrate sustainable practices into their current clinical and non-clinical operations through its structured resources. Utilising the triple bottom line framework, we aim to establish a baseline through an environmental impact assessment, empower and engage NHS staff, and ultimately reduce costs throughout Ninewells and beyond through future impacts in response to completed activities.

A collaborative project, funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, as part of the Future Observatory programme, and led by the University of Strathclyde and University of Dundee (DJCAD), with Heriot-Watt University, Abertay University, and the University of Edinburgh, NHS Scotland, industry partners, and public sector stakeholders.