Tools and Resources

• Usefulness of Specimen Documents
• ÖkoKauf (EcoBuy)
• Swedish EKU Criteria
• ICLEI Procura+ Green Purchasing Guide
• HCWH US EPP How-To Guide

Usefulness of Specimen Documents

Green procurement can help reduce energy consumption, waste production, prevent staff and patient exposure to toxic chemicals and improve working conditions.

It is challenging, but fortunately, relatively generic: much of the expertise and strategy has been mapped, and a lot of work outside healthcare can be applied to day-to-day activities within hospitals.

These documents are a small selection of those designed to take the burden off organisations developing green purchasing programs. They provide criteria for environmentally-preferable products and templates for contractual agreements with suppliers. This enables health care institutions to position environmental criteria at the heart of the procurement process without having to invest too much of their own time and effort.

ÖkoKauf (EcoBuy)

Translated as a joint project between HCWH Europe and the City of Vienna, renowned for its green purchasing programme and assistance offered to local business in greening their practices.

Download: Ökokauf Wien (Ecobuy Vienna): Specimen Procurement Guidelines to Help Healthcare Institutions Protect the Environment (pdf)

The document is useful because it:

• Specifies mandatory selection criteria for products, as applicable (for example) to electrical devices and office supplies
• Walks the reader through a weighted tender procedure for cleaning agents, including mandatory and preferred criteria and product questionnaire
• Gives a template for Contract Terms for cleaning supplies and a Purchase Order Terms and Conditions document

Swedish EKU Criteria

The EKU criteria, developed by the Swedish Environmental Management Council, have been used by an NHS screening service in Exeter, UK, when purchasing ultrasound equipment.

• Visit the EKU Criteria website
• EKU Criteria Program (pdf), a one-page overview

ICLEI Procura+ Green Purchasing Guide

This guide accompanies ICLEI's Procura+ Campaign. Procura+ is an initiative designed to help support public authorities in implementing sustainable procurement — and help promote their achievements.

• Visit the Procura+ website
• Download the entire manual, or individual chapters. The Procura+ Manual provides clear, easy-to-understand guidance for any public authority on how to implement sustainable procurement in practice — no matter what size or level of experience.

HCWH US EPP How-To Guide

Detailed step-by-step instructions, plus a detailed flow chart for implementation of Environmentally-Preferable Purchasing.

Download the EPP How-To Guide (pdf)