Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41595813›Full record

ArticleInternational journal of environmental research and public health2025

Assessing Environmental Sustainability in Acute Care Hospitals: A Survey-Based Snapshot from an Italian Regional Health System.

Andrea Brambilla, Roberta Poli, Michele Dolcini, Beatrice Pattaro, Stefano Capolongo

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Andrea BrambillaDesign & Health Lab, ABC Department, Politecnico di Milano, 20156 Milano, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-7891-0336
Roberta PoliSchool of Architecture and Urban Design, Politecnico di Milano, 20156 Milano, Italy.
Michele DolciniDesign & Health Lab, ABC Department, Politecnico di Milano, 20156 Milano, Italy.ORCID 0009-0001-1841-3669
Beatrice PattaroDesign & Health Lab, ABC Department, Politecnico di Milano, 20156 Milano, Italy.ORCID 0009-0009-9526-7448
Stefano CapolongoDesign & Health Lab, ABC Department, Politecnico di Milano, 20156 Milano, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-4679-9829

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe healthcare sector plays a significant role in environmental degradation, particularly through energy consumption, emissions, and resource use associated with hospital operations. Despite growing global awareness of the impacts, environmental sustainability remains only partially embedded with the design, planning, management, and evaluation of hospital facilities, and empirical evidence is still limited.

methodsThis exploratory study employed a mixed-method, two-phase approach. First, a scoping literature review identified key environmental dimensions and approaches for environmental sustainability in hospitals infrastructures. Second, a structured survey was distributed to Italian hospitals from Lombardy Region, between May and June 2024, to assess environmental performance and environmental strategy adoption.

resultsEight (n = 8) core environmental sustainability dimensions emerged from the review: energy efficiency, resource and waste management, transportation and mobility, materials and construction, environmental compliance, emissions, site sustainability, and design strategies. The subsequent based on these dimensions, gathered responses from (n = 18) healthcare facilities from Lombardy region, Italy. Findings revealed substantial gaps, since key measures such as on-site renewable capacity, water reuse systems, environmental certification application and health-island mitigation practices appear to be adopted sporadically. In addition, many of the surveyed facilities show consumption levels that exceed the benchmarks outlined in the literature. DISCUSSION: The findings of this study reveal a notable misalignment between the sustainability debate, maturity promoted in the academic literature and the actual practices implemented in the Italian regional context. This mismatch highlights the importance of developing more uniform evaluation tools, policy requirements, and strengthening the organizational capabilities, to improve environmental performance in Italian hospital facilities.

Indexed as

Conservation of Natural ResourcesHospitalsItalySurveys and Questionnairesenvironmental sustainabilityhospital designhospital facilitieshospital planningnext-generation hospital

Identifiers

PMID41595813
PMCPMC12840882

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.