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A critical analysis of building sustainability assessment methods for healthcare buildings

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  • Maria Castro
  • Ricardo Mateus
  • Luís Bragança

Abstract

The healthcare building project contains different aspects from the most common projects. Designing a healthcare environment is based on a number of criteria related to the satisfaction and well-being of the professional working teams, patients and administrators. Mostly due to various design requirements, these buildings are rarely designed and operated in a sustainable way. Therefore, the sustainable development is a concept whose importance has grown significantly in the last decade in this sector. The worldwide economic crisis reinforces the growing environmental concerns as well as raising awareness among people to a necessary and inevitable shift in the values of their society. To support sustainable building design, several building sustainability assessment (BSA) methods are being developed worldwide. Since healthcare buildings are rather complex systems than other buildings, so specific methods were developed for them. These methods are aimed to support decision-making towards the introduction of the best sustainability practices during the design and operation phases of a healthcare environment. However, the comparison between the results of different methods is difficult, if not impossible, since they address different environmental, societal and economic criteria, and they emphasize different phases of the life cycle. Therefore, the aim of this study was to clarify the differences between the main BSA methods for healthcare buildings by analysing and categorizing them. Furthermore, the benefits of these methods in promoting a more sustainable environment will be analysed, and the current situation of them within the context of standardization of the concept sustainable construction will be discussed. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2015

Suggested Citation

  • Maria Castro & Ricardo Mateus & Luís Bragança, 2015. "A critical analysis of building sustainability assessment methods for healthcare buildings," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 17(6), pages 1381-1412, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:endesu:v:17:y:2015:i:6:p:1381-1412
    DOI: 10.1007/s10668-014-9611-0
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Murray, Joe & Pahl, O. & Burek, S., 2008. "Evaluating the scope for energy-efficiency improvements in the public sector: Benchmarking NHSScotland's smaller health buildings," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(3), pages 1236-1242, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Yiwen Chiu & Yi Yang & Cody Morse, 2022. "Quantifying carbon footprint for ecological river restoration," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(1), pages 952-970, January.
    2. Verónica Duque-Uribe & William Sarache & Elena Valentina Gutiérrez, 2019. "Sustainable Supply Chain Management Practices and Sustainable Performance in Hospitals: A Systematic Review and Integrative Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(21), pages 1-30, October.
    3. Nina Lazar & K. Chithra, 2021. "Comprehensive bibliometric mapping of publication trends in the development of Building Sustainability Assessment Systems," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(4), pages 4899-4923, April.
    4. Nina Lazar & K. Chithra, 2022. "Role of culture in sustainable development and sustainable built environment: a review," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(5), pages 5991-6031, May.
    5. Yijia Miao & Doris Sau Fung Yu & Weiguang Tan & Sunnie Sing Yeung Lau & Stephen Siu Yu Lau & Yiqi Tao, 2024. "Crafting Sustainable Healthcare Environments Using Green Building Ratings for Aging Societies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-22, February.

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