A policy analysis of active travel in public healthcare organizations, Victoria Australia

Healthcare organizations contribute directly and indirectly to global greenhouse gas emissions and consequently to degradation of the environment and poor human health. Active travel has known positive effects on both the health of the environment and humans. Within Australia, healthcare organizations are significant employers and while efforts to reduce the impact of healthcare organizations on the environment are growing, there remains little advancement in increasing rates of active travel among healthcare staff. This study describes active travel policies in the public healthcare sector within the State of Victoria in Australia through a systematic analysis of publicly facing documents. A qualitative document analysis approach was adopted to investigate Victorian public healthcare organization’s policies for active travel. Organizational websites, environmental policies, health promotion pages, and vision and mission statements were analysed for active travel policies and content. Of the 21 healthcare organizations investigated, none had a specific policy on active travel for its employees. Many organizations had environmental sustainability policies, with some policies referencing the need to transition staff into more sustainable commute modes. The inclusion of measurable policy objectives was mostly absent. There is a paucity of policies that would enable an increase in active travel in the major publicly funded Victorian healthcare organizations in Australia, despite the majority of organizations signing on to the Global Green and Healthy Hospitals Initiative, which highlights patient and staff transport as one of the ten sustainability goals. Without clear and actionable policy, healthcare organizations will remain at a difficult crossroads where their culture fails to reflect the health promoting advice they provide to their community. However, with this knowledge, opportunities such as improving end of trip facilities and the development of robust facilitative policy can be undertaken.<p></p>