Sustainability

Social Determinants of Health

UCLA Health recognizes the connection between healthy communities, environmental stewardship, and health outcomes. Health is influenced by many factors beyond medical care. The environments where people live, work, learn, and spend their time, along with social and economic conditions, access to resources, and individual health behaviors, can contribute to overall health and well-being.

Through collaboration and continuous improvement, we seek opportunities to reduce our environmental impact, responsibly manage resources, and support the long-term health and well-being of our patients and communities.
 
Social Determinants

UCLA Health is committed to addressing the social determinants of health in several ways. Our community health needs assessments provide information about the needs, issues, and health status of the populations we serve. This information helps us develop a community health improvement plan by justifying how and where resources should be allocated to best meet community needs. As an anchor institution, we strive to support the communities we serve through responsible operations, sustainable procurement, community engagement, and initiatives that promote healthier and more resilient environments.

We have also adopted LEED, or Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design as the standard for our green building practices. Our hospitals and clinics are built with patient safety as our first consideration. Our designers and architects choose building specifications that do not contain harmful chemicals of concern outlined in the Practice Greenhealth Safer Chemicals Initiative. We address key environmental health hazards such as indoor air and water quality, and implement energy efficiency and waste reduction programs to reduce our resource consumption.