Hospitals switch off to tackle climate emergency

Eight hospitals nationwide – including Midlands Regional Hospital, Mullingar – took part in ‘The BIG Switch Off’ and demonstrated the positive impact individual actions can have in reducing the carbon footprint of healthcare.

Over a period of just three days, the hospitals saved enough electricity to run 97 standard Irish homes for a month.University Hospital Galway was named winner of ‘The BIG Switch Off’ at an awards ceremony in Dublin, today.

The them there implemented an outstanding staff awareness campaign and reduced their energy consumption by 10% during the competition period of the October bank holiday weekend.Midlands Regional Hospital, Mullingar was a runner-up.

‘The BIG Switch Off’, run by the Office of Public Works (OPW) in collaboration with HSE Estates, empowered hospital staff to take control of the energy consumed in their workplace by embedding energy saving habits into their daily routines.

More than 2,000 hospital staff signed a pledge to make an extra effort to switch off non-essential equipment, making a positive contribution in preventing wasted energy which contributes to the ongoing climate emergency.

Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran, Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works and Flood Relief, said: "I am delighted with the success of ‘The BIG Switch Off’ initiative and commend the level of engagement from hospital staff, as it is entirely their small individual actions that have accumulated to make a significant impact on carbon emissions."

Conor Clarke, senior engineer at the OPW, said: "The world will not become carbon neutral overnight, but we can get there if individuals and organisations choose to join the global movement to transform our world."

Through our Optimising Power @ Work programme, currently running in 22 hospitals and nearly 300 other government buildings, we will continue to build on the successes of ‘The BIG Switch Off’."

For further information on the Optimising Power @ Work campaign or the BIG Switch Off contact opwcsc@opw.ie.

The eight Hospitals that took place in ‘The Big Switch Off’ Competition were:

University Hospital Galway – Winner

Midlands Regional Hospital, Mullingar – Runner up

Our Lady’s Hospital, Navan – Highly commended

University Hospital Waterford – Highly commended

Cavan General Hospital – Highly commended

Cork University Hospital

Midlands Regional Hospital, Tullamore

Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda

Combined, the hospitals saved enough electricity to power an average operating theatre for 184 days or to power 404 incubators for a week.