Strategic Sustainability Specialist, Define Sustainability, LLC St. Paul, MN
Peter serves on the American Hospital Association (AHA) Sustainability Committee, which was created in 2024 to represent all health care professions and guide the development of resources for sustainability and decarbonization of the health care sector. He previously served as inaugural Chair of ASHE's Sustainability & Decarbonization Committee (2022-2023), overseeing 3 Task Forces to support the rapid development and distribution of sustainability resources for the health care sector.
Peter created define sustainability LLC to help organizations plan and implement facilities improvements to advance sustainability in the built environment. He draws from experience in early-phase project development, sustainable operations and energy systems optimization to identify high impact areas for scoping, budgeting and executive/board approval. Visit www.definesustainability.com to learn more.
Presentation
Session B
Healthcare Leaders Guide to Sustainability & Decarbonization
This comprehensive presentation will teach you how to identify, evaluate, pay for, and implement sustainable solutions for healthcare facilities. Peter helped spearhead the “Health Care Leader’s Guide to Sustainability and Decarbonization” in conjunction with American Hospital Association and ASHE. His experience as an architectural engineer guides his approach to “activating EGS through facilities.” Don’t miss this important presentation for leadership teams, from c-suite to facility management.
PRESENTATION OBJECTIVES: Peter’s presentation will help the audience answer the following questions:
1. Why is the Health Care Sector embracing Sustainability & Decarbonization now? 2. Where are carbon emissions in hospital operations and how can hospitals “decarbonize”? 3. How can Health Care Executives take immediate actions to advance sustainability? 4. Who else needs to be involved?
Jay West
Jay West, Senior Director, Chemical Products & Technology American Chemistry Council, Washington, DC
Jay West is the Senior Director, Chemical Products & Technology at the American Chemistry Council. He manages national, state, and international advocacy on a diverse range of issues, including nanotechnology, high-performance building materials, and controlled substance precursors12. With over 13 years of experience in the business of chemistry, Jay plays a crucial role in promoting responsible production, use, and management of fluoropolymers through the Performance Fluoropolymer Partnership (PFP)3.
Presentation
Session B
PFAS In Healthcare: What You Need to Know
Jay West, representing the American Chemistry Council, chronicles the issues with “forever chemicals” in healthcare and the impact ongoing legislative actions have and will have on their use. Jay will provide an up-to-the-minute profile of New England States’ varying restrictions and regulations on the use of PFAS chemicals in the healthcare environment.
Seth Gabarro, MBA
Head of Health Systems Growth, Best Buy Health Boston, MA
As the Director of Health System Partnerships at Best Buy Health, Seth Gabarro plays a crucial role in supporting healthcare organizations as they implement home-based care technologies. His experience as the past Director of Telehealth for York Hospital in Maine gives him unique insight into the specific needs of hospitals as they seek to leverage digital technologies on behalf of patients. Seth earned an MBA from the University of New Hampshire and completed his undergraduate degree in Economics and Education at Bowdoin College. He is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives, the American Telemedicine Association, and Maine Hospital Association.
Presentation
Session C
Bringing it Home: Enabling Virtual, Home-Based Care
Leveraging digital technology at home is a patient-friendly way to reduce healthcare’s physical and carbon footprints. Seth Gabarro will show how Best Buy Health is supporting healthcare organizations with care at home technologies in three areas:
• Wellness @ Home using smart home tech, medical devices, & fitness equipment • Aging @ Home using emergency response systems, simple phones, Alexa devices and phone apps to maintain connectivity to caregivers and loved ones. • Care @ Home using remote patient monitoring, telehealth, and patient engagement to manage chronic conditions or provide care beyond the hospital.
Kailash Viswanathan
Director of Energy, Arch Energy, Milford, MA
Kailash Viswanathan’s expertise is in helping clients create sustainable and resilient buildings while reducing costs and increasing energy efficiency. As Director of Energy of Consigli Construction’s new Arch Energy division, Kailash combines his expertise in sales, engineering, and finance to help clients shift towards healthy, smart, high-performance buildings, low-carbon infrastructure, and deep energy retrofits.
Kailash earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Sardar Patel College of Engineering. Prior to joining Arch Energy, he served as GreenerU’s Vice President of Operations.
Presentation
Session D
Funding Your Energy Upgrades: Options for Rural Hospitals
At a time when hospital infrastructure is often outdated and operating costs are at an all-time high, rural care centers must evaluate their energy consumption and find ways to upgrade aging infrastructure. Kailash will present examples of how regional institutions are leveraging Inflation Reduction Act Tax Incentives, Efficiency Maine, and other funding sources to help replace systems and reduce long-term operating costs.
Kailash will talk about what steps you can take to get to Net Zero. Decarbonization is viewed as expensive, but it is a necessity for the future and your stakeholders. Just as students want to study in a campus that does not burn fossil fuels, patients want the same at your hospitals. Decarbonization starts with energy efficiency. Resource-efficient decarbonization means we reduce, recover, and recycle before we go all electric.
Join us at Compass!
We look forward to seeing you at Compass this year!
