Nursing facility partners in green initiative

The nursing and rehabilitation center is Ryders’ third facility to integrate significant sustainability improvements.

Bottom Image courtesy of Budderfly

When it comes to sustainability in health care, green projects at acute care hospitals tend to dominate the headlines. However, smaller, non-hospital operations are also taking a critical eye to their environmental stewardship and creating innovative partnerships to make big investments. 

Connecticut-based Ryders Health Management, a network of skilled nursing and rehabilitation centers, has partnered with Energy-as-a-Service firm Budderfly, Shelton, Conn., since 2018, when the company installed several energy-efficiency technologies that have saved Ryders $100,000 in the past five years. Recently, the two partnered again to complete a 317-kilowatt (kW) rooftop solar installation at the Mystic Healthcare Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Mystic, Conn.

Budderfly provided the solar installation at zero upfront cost to the health care provider and funded the investment through a share of the energy cost savings generated by efficiency upgrades and the management and monitoring of energy use and demand. The rooftop solar system will help to offset up to 95% of the facility’s annual energy consumption with no-cost, greenhouse gas emissions-free power.

“The sustainability projects we’ve completed with Budderfly are not only beneficial to the environment but also positively impact the comfort of our staff and patients,” says Martin Sbriglio, R.N., DHL, CEO of Ryders Health Management. “Of the approximately 230 skilled nursing facilities in Connecticut, Mystic Healthcare is one of the first skilled nursing facilities to be majority solar powered. We’re proud of this accomplishment and hope to set a new standard for the field.”

The nursing and rehabilitation network has also contracted with Budderfly at its Lord Chamberlain (Stratford, Conn.) and Cheshire House (Waterbury, Conn.) facilities. Across the three Ryders’ locations, energy solutions have mitigated 933 metric tons of carbon emissions, the equivalent of taking 208 gas-powered vehicles off the road for one year. 

Ryders plans to expand its partnership with Budderfly to all seven of its locations. The investments have helped in a statewide initiative to ensure a greener future.