designwire daily | Introducting LEED for Healthcare

Introducting LEED for Healthcare

by Ian Volner | Friday, April 8, 2011

The United States Green Building Council’s signature program, the LEED rating system for energy-efficient architecture, is debuting a new set of standards tailor-made for designers of medical facilities. LEED for Healthcare, unveiled at this year’s CleanMed Conference in Phoenix, Arizona, will act as a comprehensive eco-yardstick for everything from medical offices to elder care centers.

Says Scot Horst, senior vice president of LEED at USGBC, “LEED for Healthcare is now six years in the making, addressing the healthcare industry’s unique green building needs.” Horst stressed the advantages that eco-friendly construction can confer to healthcare providers, noting that “research has shown that when we are treated and heal in a green healthcare facility… we heal faster.”

The new certification protocol was developed by USGBC in consultation with the Green Guide for Healthcare (GGHC), a joint initiative of the Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems and Health Care Without Harm. Once the enrollment procedure is fully in place, LEED for Healthcare will offer guidelines for siting, waste disposal, and water and energy use, along with complimentary programs like workshops and webcasts to help get the word out on sustainable healthcare design to the architectural community.