On top of his demanding day job as facilities and general services director for UCI Health, Joe Brothman has become a global ambassador for clean power.
That’s because he’s overseeing what’s been hailed as America’s first fully electric hospital – a major step forward in efforts to reduce air pollution and fossil fuel emissions. The 144-bed acute-care hospital and ambulatory care center on the new UCI Health campus at Jamboree Road and Campus Drive is set to open in December, but eight e-powered outpatient operating rooms are already serving patients.
“I’ve been all over the world talking about this project and what we’ve learned,” Brothman says. Over the past year, he has shared details of UC Irvine’s energy innovations with colleagues at the California Society for Healthcare Engineering, facility managers of Orange County theme parks and attendees at an Australian national health facilities summit.
Fortuitous start
Brothman began working in hospitals at age 15 when – today it seems ironic – he needed cash for gas to drive his 1992 Ford Explorer. That ignited a 22-year career that has brought him from a part-time mechanic to his current position overseeing billions of dollars worth of infrastructure throughout the UCI Health system.
The decision to move forward with an all-electric system at UCI, made about six years ago, had many authors, according to Brothman, but was chiefly the product of a University of California policy to minimize greenhouse gas emissions from large new facilities.
“Hospitals use a lot of energy, and they’re around for as long as 100 years,” he says. “So this was a very important decision. We all thought it was doable, and we had the ambition to proceed.”
The new power strategy should have many significant benefits, Brothman says, including improving local air quality by reducing pollution from burning gas. “We take very seriously the idea of a mission of health care without harm, so that we do our jobs without causing negative impacts to our community,” he says.
The hospital’s innovative system should also be more resilient to risks from mechanical breakdowns or natural disasters, he adds, given that instead of the conventional strategy of relying on a centralized natural gas steam plant, it will use smaller point-of-use electric steam generators.
A mechanical ‘smorgasbord’
The energy system will employ what Brothman calls a “smorgasbord” of equipment, including pumps to heat and cool interiors and water and a diesel-powered generator designed to provide emergency power to the entire campus for more than 96 hours. Solar panels will supply some of the energy, while the rest will come from providers of 100% renewable power.
Among its challenges, the e-hospital project has required some major retraining of staff, a job Brothman compares to teaching a mechanic accustomed to diesel locomotives to work on an electric train. It’s unlikely to save money in the short term, but as natural gas prices increase, Brothman expects it to make financial sense in the future.
“I believe our choice will have a ripple effect, and I feel lucky that I get to spread the word and share all the lessons we’ve learned,” Brothman says.
