Health Care Without Harm Honors 2015 Award Winners at CleanMed

Five winners showcase leadership on environmental health, waste reduction, and social change

[Portland, Oregon] – Health Care Without Harm honored five outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions to the development of sustainable health care. The annual awards were bestowed at CleanMed, the leading health care sustainability conference co-hosted by Health Care Without Harm and Practice Greenhealth

Environmental Health Hero Award

The Environmental Health Hero Award recognizes individuals whose achievements have both deepened our understanding of the critical links between health and the environment and have catalyzed tangible policy or research reforms that protect human health and the environment.

Sister Susan Vickers, Vice President of Community Health for Dignity Health, received the 2015 Environmental Health Hero Award. In her position, Sister Susan Vickers is responsible for directing and overseeing system-wide community benefit initiatives, corporate social responsibility, and ecology programs. In addition, she collaborates with other members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility to raise social responsibility issues with the management of companies in Dignity Health's investment portfolio. 

Charlotte Brody Award

Created in honor of a lifelong advocate for social change, the Charlotte Brody Award recognizes nurses who go beyond everyday nursing endeavors to proactively promote and protect environmental health and who generate significant outcomes from their efforts.

Kathleen A. Curtis, LPN, Executive Director of Clean and Healthy New York, is the 2015 Charlotte Brody Award winner. Ms. Curtis has over twenty-five years of environmental health experience, and is a widely recognized national leader. She serves on the steering committees of the Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families Coalition and is Flame Retardant Advisor for the Coming Clean Collaborative. In New York, Ms. Curtis is Clean and Healthy New York’s chief lobbyist and organizer. Her leadership has guided enactment of several state laws regulating toxic chemicals. 

Stephanie Davis Waste Reduction Award and Scholarship

Created in honor of a tireless champion for health care waste reduction and pollution prevention, the Stephanie Davis Award recognizes and supports those in health care organizations who struggle to “green” health care. 

The 2015 Stephanie Davis Waste Reduction Award winners include:

  • Shannan Bridgewater, RN, Clinical Informatics Support Specialist, Paradise Valley Hospital
  • Allison Carr, Recycling & Sustainability Coordinator, Environmental Health and Facility Services Section of General Internal Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine
  • Kim Wilson, Technical Support Specialist, Department of Medical Imaging, Chair-Hazardous Materials and Wastes Work Group, Meriter-UnityPoint Health

This year’s award winners will be recognized throughout CleanMed 2015, taking place in Portland, Oregon on May 12-14, 2015. 

About Health Care Without Harm

Health Care Without Harm works to transform the health sector worldwide, without compromising patient safety or care, so that it becomes ecologically sustainable and a leading advocate for environmental health and justice. 

About CleanMed

CleanMed is the premier global conference on environmentally sustainable health care. CleanMed 2015 is the 12th international conference to catalyze environmental improvements in the health care sector. CleanMed’s mission is to accelerate the health care sector’s commitment to environmental sustainability and regenerative health to improve the health of people and the environment.