This month, we launched two bespoke behaviour change programmes to 23,000 NHS employees.
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust will use our Jump sustainability engagement programmes to help NHS employees reduce their carbon footprint. This is a positive step towards the NHS’s target of being the first net-zero healthcare system in the world.
But what is the significance of the NHS’s role in helping the UK reach our net zero targets, and why does engaging NHS staff make a difference?
A net zero NHS
Whilst we recover from the COVID pandemic, we know that another health crisis is on the horizon: the climate crisis. As NHS Chief Executive Simon Stevens says, “The burden of coronavirus has been exacerbated and amplified by wider, deep-seated social, economic and health concerns. The right response is therefore not to duck or defer action on these longer-term challenges even as we continue to respond to immediate pressures. One of the most significant is the climate emergency, which is also a health emergency.”
Last year, the NHS announced their ambitious net zero by 2040 target (we take a look at that in closer detail in this blog). This is a significant commitment as the NHS is the largest employee in the UK and is responsible for 4% of the UK’s total carbon emissions.
The health emergency that Sir Simon refers to will, like the pandemic, affect us all in different ways. Similarly, it will require all of us to take action to prevent catastrophe.
Collectively, hospital sites and clinics can reduce their emissions by making environmental performance improvements in areas such as energy, waste, water and travel.
With more than 1.3 million people employed by the NHS, there is also potential for a cultural and behavioral shift on an individual level: small changes in behaviour will have a big ripple effect.
Engaging 23,000 NHS staff
As behaviour change experts we know that to create change, we need to motivate small positive actions and drive them to become habits. Through targeted communications via email and app notifications, we provide a gentle nudge to staff whether they are at home or at work.
For a look and feel that employees instantly recognise, the bespoke programmes incorporate elements of the Trusts’ existing sustainability brands. For Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust’s Director of Estates & Facilities, Craige Richardson, this was really important: “For the Trust to be a truly sustainable organisation, we need all our staff to play their part in delivering our Green Plan to achieve our overall ambition of being one of the Greenest Trusts in the country.” Their ‘GRASP Rewards’ programme was developed using the Trust’s existing GRASP campaign, premised on the tagline: ‘Be Green, Recyling, be Aware, be Sustainable, for our Patients.’
Making changes that will positively impact staff and their patients has been a key focus of these NHS Trusts. As Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust’s Chief Operating Officer, Eilish Midlane,says, “We are dedicated to innovating to ensure we offer the best care to our patients. Part of this is committing to a better future for them and our community, which is why we have placed sustainability at the heart of our strategy.
“We know that to achieve the NHS’s net zero by 2040 target we need to come together.”
This has been a hugely stressful year for NHS staff. We know that it’s important to complete positive actions that not only benefit our wider environment, but also our individual wellbeing. As a result, mental wellbeing is a key feature of the programmes, with a focus on mindfulness, promoting existing in-hospital Health & Wellbeing support services and physical activity.
The top-performing individuals and teams are rewarded with vouchers and donations to Trust charities or funding areas. It’s important to us that our programmes have a positive impact on the wider hospital-community of charities and patients who will benefit from these donations.
Small actions, big difference
By rewarding their staff for completing activities, NHS Trusts will create habits amongst NHS staff. Our NHS Trusts grouped actions around their key focus areas, such as energy, air quality and travel, with bespoke activities within each of these.
These activities included: contamination guides for disposing waste across the hospital; hospital plastic-reduction pledges; encouraging reusable cutlery in hospital canteens and travelling actively to work to minimize cars in hospital car parks.
The three Trusts join a wider community of Trusts already working with Jump, including Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust and Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust. In 2020, they collectively recorded a record-breaking 50,000 actions to improve the environment and avoided over 79,000kg of carbon emissions.
Join Jump and champion sustainability for the NHS
Are you an NHS Trust looking to engage your people in sustainability and wellbeing? Contact us now for a free demo!
