Perceiving sustainability and practicing community based rehabilitation : a critical examination of the Western Cape Rehabilitation Centre (WCRC) as a case study

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT:Problem Statement: From a sustainability point of view, hospitals offer their serviceswithout taking into consideration their impact on the environment, the interplay betweenvarious sectors, key elements of sustainable development and interconnectedness. Thisstudy represents an attempt to design a 'virtual green hospital facility that does morewith fewer resources.Aims and Objectives: Contribute towards achieving sustainable and better qualityhealthcare services. To generate evidence and increase our understanding of thesustainability of hospital resource flows. Design a 'virtual green hospital.Research Method: The research approach consists of a comprehensive literature review,mixed with substantiated field research and interviews. The literature review provided anunderstanding, recommendations and interventions for the virtual project. These can beused to promote greater sustainability through WCRC's healthcare system, energyefficiency and green hospital buildings. Interviews and questionnaires were used tocollect the qualitative data. The interpretive technique was used to analyse the collecteddata. Consumption statistics of electricity, water and waste were used to collect thequantitative data. It was analysed using the green building rating tool. The rating toolawards points according to incorporated measures, and arrives at a total score afterappropriate weighting. The green building rating tool was used to establish the rating ofWCRC as it stands and what it could ideally be as a retrofit? The data was presented asdemographic information in tables, charts and graphs, drawn from the collected data.Findings: The findings that emerged suggest that: a) green hospital buildings promotegreater sustainability than the current modern healthcare hospital buildings at WCRC andretrofitting would promote greater sustainability; b) the majority of WCRC's currenthealthcare provision is done in the conventional 'business as usual approach'; c) thegreatest weaknesses of the hospital is its heavy dependence (95% average) on nonrenewableenergy sources of fuel, electricity and water; d) procurement isn't focused inthe bio-region; e) sustainability isn't viewed as the cornerstone to influence policy; and f)the flow of resources gets conducted through socio-economic systems.Conclusion: The current design of the hospital needs to be retrofitted into a greenbuilding, which will promote greater sustainability. A higher rated green star building forWCRC would promote greater sustainability. Healthcare provision is done in theconventional 'business as usual approach'. Therefore the healthcare system facesthreats in the immediate future, which include the impact of climate change, overdependency on fossil fuels and increasing urban sprawl.A virtual green hospital is designed to reduce the overall impact of its built environmenton human health and the natural environment by:• Efficiently using energy, water, and other resources;• Protecting occupant health and improving employee productivity;• Reducing waste, pollution and environmental degradation.Recommendations: In this sustainability criterion, a paradigm shift is required for WCRChospital to go green and become sustainable. At a local scale WCRC needs to green thecurrent hospital building by retrofitting. WCRC needs to energy switch from nonrenewablesto sustainable renewable resources. Bioregional consumption andprocurement needs to be practiced whilst establishing a local health movement to engagesuppliers and focus on sustainability.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University