Healthcare industry has climate responsibility
How UCI Health — Irvine is leading the sustainability transformation
September 26, 2023
UCI Health co-workers snap a selfie during the topping off ceremony
for UCI Health – Irvine in July 2023.
Photo by Karen Tapia
IN THE NEWS: As the impact of climate change widens, many are doing their part to become more sustainable. UCI Health is one of the healthcare industry leaders taking on the challenge and reducing its carbon footprint.
UCI Health radiologist Dr. Vahid Yaghmai, professor and chair of the Department of Radiological Sciences at the UCI School of Medicine, talked to the Radiological Society of North America about the issue and what is driving the UCI Health transformation into a more sustainable organization.
“Embedding sustainable practices in healthcare operations is important because the climate crisis is a health crisis. The healthcare sector represents 18% of the U.S. economy, and changes we make have a significant impact on people and markets. By addressing sustainability, we are improving health.”
One of the main efforts of UCI Health in this regard is the construction of an all-electric healthcare campus: UCI Health — Irvine. The $1.3 billion project is being headed by Paul Da Veiga, director of planning, design and construction at UCI Health.
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About UCI Health — Irvine
UCI Health — Irvine, a new medical complex under construction at the north end of the UC Irvine campus, will bring unparalleled expertise and the finest evidence-based care that only an academic medical system can offer to the communities of coastal and south Orange County.
As part of UCI Health — which includes the flagship UCI Medical Center in Orange, Orange County’s only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center and multiple outpatient care locations — the new 1.2 million-square-foot campus will offer key clinical programs in oncology, digestive health, neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics and spine surgery.
The nation’s first medical center powered by an all-electric central utilities plant, UCI Health — Irvine will be home to:
- The Joe C. Wen & Family UCI Health Center for Advanced Care, a five-story, 168,000-square-foot medical facility offering the full range of multidisciplinary specialty care for children and adults under a single roof, urgent care services, the Center for Children’s Health and the UCI Health Center for Autism & Neurodevelopmental Disorders — Opening spring 2024
- The Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center and Ambulatory Care building, a five-story, 225,000-square-foot tower with 36 private exam rooms, numerous infusion bays and operating rooms — Opening 2024
- A seven-story, 350,000-square-foot, acute care hospital with 144 inpatient beds, 10 operating suites and a 24-hour emergency department with 20 treatment rooms — Opening 2025
