ALBIN KNAUDER, DANIEL KREUZER, AND BERNHARD ZAHRL – THE HOSPITALLER ORDER OF SAINT JOHN OF GOD, AUSTRIA SUSTAINABILITY
Navigating the road to net-zero CO2
The health sector is responsible for 4.4 per cent of global net emissions (two gigatons of carbon dioxide equivalent) and the climate footprint of the health sector is equivalent to the annual emissions of 514 coal-fired power plants. If the health industry were its own state, it would be the world’s fifth largest emitter.1 The health industry is therefore in an
unexpectedly paradoxical situation: on the one hand, it is called to promote the health of all of us, to heal and alleviate illnesses and, where healing is no longer possible, to accompany people on their final journey. On the other hand, it is one of the biggest emitters of harmful
greenhouse gases and causes lasting damage to the environment. However, many different, efficient, and
sustainable ‘therapeutic measures’ can be taken. The environmental management of the Hospitaller Brothers of Saint John of God, one of the largest private non-profit healthcare providers in Austria, therefore extends to all areas of their hospitals and other care facilities.
How the Brothers of Saint John of God protect the environment “Man is not above creation, but a part of it.” In order to do justice to the issue of
sustainability, the Brothers of Saint John of God have decided to focus on
emissions
Albin Knauder, Daniel Kreuzer, and Bernhard Zahrl of Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God, one of the largest private non-profit healthcare providers in Austria, analyse how the twin aims of providing healthcare and pursuing a carbon neutral policy can be reconciled.
environmental protection – in particular on de-carbonisation – and in recent years have also succeeded in certifying all operational facilities according to the EMAS III environmental management system.2 With this system, the management has both the basis and key figures for decisions that will reduce or avoid environmental impacts in the future. Environmental aspects are identified and assessed by an environmental officer with the support of local environmental teams. For each individual activity, direct and indirect emissions to air, noise, water consumption, discharge of in-house waste water, material efficiency, and indirect environmental impacts such as transport, purchasing, and construction are assessed. To evaluate the environmental aspects, the system of utility value analysis is applied, which records the various factors of environmental impact. Energy use has emerged as the most significant environmental aspect across the organisation, followed by waste generation and water consumption.
Daniel Kreuzer Albin Knauder Bernhard Zahrl
•Daniel Kreuzer is a trained electronics and communications technician. He was technical director of the Order’s hospital in St. Veit/Glan (Carinthia) for almost 20 years before moving to provincial management in 2019. There he is strategically and organisationally responsible for the areas of construction, facility management, and medical technology. His areas of responsibility include the facilities in Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary. He has been a board member of the Austrian Association of Hospital Engineers since 2017. •Albin Knauder studied environmental management. From 2004 to 2021 he was head of the ecology department of the Kärntner Krankenanstalten Betriebsgesellschaft (KABEG) and responsible for waste management, hazardous goods, energy management, waste water management, environmental management, and EMAS III certifications. He has been the environmental officer of the Brothers of Saint John of God in Austria for several years. Knauder is a member of the working group on ÖNORM S2104 (medical waste) of the Austrian Standards International. He is also a member of the Austrian Waste and Environment Forum and gives expert lectures. •Bernhard Zahrl has been the head of corporate communications in the Austrian Province of the Hospitaller Brothers of Saint John of God since 2001, where he coordinates a team of over twenty colleagues in the individual centres. He is also responsible for a monthly health magazine. Bernhard has been involved in environmental protection since his youth.
IFHE DIGEST 2023
Motivation to act The fact that the Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God is intensively involved in the area of environmental protection might be surprising at first glance. But environmental protection and sustainability are fundamental concerns. As early as 2000, an internal document stated: “We must foster strategic attitudes which create responsible relationships with the environment in which we live and which we share, and of which we are merely its stewards.”3 Another milestone was the publication of the encyclical Laudato si’ by Pope Francis in 2015. Sentences such as: “There is an urgent need to develop policies so that, in the next few years, the emission of carbon dioxide and other highly polluting gases can be drastically reduced, for example, substituting for fossil fuels and developing sources of renewable energy.
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