RENEWABLE ENERGY
energy microgrid, currently in its first phase, is expected to be operational by 2025. It aims to halve carbon emissions, providing a sustainable blueprint for healthcare facilities nationwide. Valley Children’s also aims to achieve Net Zero carbon emissions by 2050, reinforcing its environmental commitment. Valley Children’s commitment to
sustainability transcends energy resilience. It encompasses a holistic approach that considers the environmental impact of its operations and its broader responsibility towards the community. This commitment is manifested in various initiatives aimed at reducing waste, conserving water – given that the hospital is in a region that constantly faces droughts, and promoting sustainable practices both within the hospital and in the community, including sourcing food from local and sustainable producers, and reducing food waste.
A partnership for the future The collaboration between Valley Children’s and Mazzetti exemplifies the synergistic power of engineering and healthcare to address pressing challenges. This partnership is a testament to the potential for innovation and efficiency in creating responsible and sustainable solutions. It sets a new standard in healthcare and sustainability, extending beyond constructing a state- of-the-art facility to foster a sustainable future. Valley Children’s Healthcare’s endeavour
to become the US’s first Net Zero paediatric hospital campus is a beacon of innovation and a model for the healthcare industry. It represents a confluence of vision, innovation, and commitment to the health of the planet and its inhabitants. As this project progresses, it is poised to inspire and guide other healthcare institutions towards a sustainable and resilient future. For more details on Valley Children’s sustainability efforts and the project, including a rendering of the solar field, visit
valleychildrens.org/sustainability.
Walt Vernon and Mazzetti
Walt Vernon is the CEO of Mazzetti, and the founder and CEO of Sextant, a not-for-profit organisation committed to developing sustainable infrastructure for health facilities in low-resourced countries around the world. He spearheads the climate consulting business for Mazzetti, helping clients with a wide range of solutions, from purchasing to data flow, to carbon accounting, to behaviour change. With degrees in Mathematics, Philosophy, Engineering, Business, and Law (including an LLM in Energy Law), he says he is ‘uniquely qualified to help healthcare organisations working on carbon reduction issues’. Mazzetti is a global engineering design and consulting firm ‘with a history of delivering forward-thinking solutions’ for healthcare, life sciences, and other highly complex sectors. From
its inception with a small team of MEP engineers, the business now has over 200 staff in 11 locations in the US and India.
Ratan Milevoj and Valley Children’s Healthcare
As Vice-President of Innovation for Valley Children’s Healthcare, Ratan Milevoj is responsible for bringing best practice to the organisation. Joining Valley Children’s in 2004, she has held several leadership roles – including director of Physician Network Development, with responsibility for acquisitions, start-ups, primary care strategic plans, and operations, and director of Health Information Management, Patient Access, Payer Contracting, and Revenue Integrity. She gained her Master of Business Administration with emphasis in Finance and Marketing and Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from California State University, Fresno. Valley Children’s Healthcare reportedly provides Central California’s ‘only high-quality, comprehensive care exclusively for children’. It offers highly specialised medical and surgical services at its 358-bed standalone children’s hospital, which includes 28 NICU beds at regional hospitals. The Valley Children’s Healthcare network includes specialty care centres, paediatric primary care practices, and women’s health services. With over 670 physicians and 3,500 staff, Valley Children’s delivers care to over 1.3 million children from Kern County to the state capital, and from the Central Coast to the Sierra.
February 2024 Health Estate Journal 37
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