Intermountain Named Community Partner of The Year by The Utah Clean Air Partnership

Utah governor Gary Herbert presented the award to Intermountain to Marc Harrison, MD, Intermountain’s chief executive officer, at the fourth annual Show UCAIR Summit earlier this month. 

Intermountain and UCAIR have been partners since the clean-air organization’s creation more than five years ago. UCAIR selected Intermountain as the 2019 partner of the year due to the nationally-recognized health system’s transition to a fleet of clean-fuel vehicles, promotion of idle-free campuses, and education to the community about the impacts of air quality on health. 

“We replaced 18 vehicles for hybrid models in 2018,” said Steve Bergstrom, Intermountain Healthcare’s sustainability director. “By 2025, 80 percent of all Intermountain vehicles will be hybrid, low-emission, or electric. This includes courier, Homecare, and pool vehicles.” 

“We’re honored to receive the Partner of the Year Award,” said Liz Joy, MD, Intermountain’s medical director for Community Health and volunteer UCAIR spokeswoman and board member. “It reflects the efforts of many of our people who are addressing air quality and health.” 

“Intermountain’s Community Health Needs Assessments have identified air quality as a key concern for Utah communities,” added Dr. Joy. “We’ll continue to implement strategies that reduce our carbon footprint, including using sustainable energy sources, creating energy-efficient facilities, and reducing tailpipe emissions.” 

Intermountain Healthcare is a Utah-based not-for-profit system of 23 hospitals, 170 clinics, a Medical Group with some 2,300 employed physicians and advanced care practitioners, a health insurance company called SelectHealth, and other health services. Intermountain is widely recognized as a leader in transforming healthcare through evidence-based best practices, high quality, and sustainable costs.

###