Social and Environmental Life Cycle Assessment Applied to Healthcare Services – A Qualitative Approach

Companies have been increasingly challenged to evaluate not just their environmental performance but also their social and economic performances. Following the environmental life cycle assessment approach (E-LCA), social life... [ view full abstract ]

Companies have been increasingly challenged to evaluate not just their environmental performance but also their social and economic performances. Following the environmental life cycle assessment approach (E-LCA), social life cycle assessment (S-LCA) has been developed to evaluate the social impacts that emerge during the life cycle of a product or a service. Despite the recent increasing publications by S-LCA practitioners, there is still no standardized methodology for selecting stakeholders, impact categories, subcategories, and indicators as well as assessing the impacts. In addition, many case studies focus on products and less on services. The stakeholder “consumers” has also not been considered in most of the studies. In healthcare, patients, as “consumers”, are key stakeholders and the center of the still evolving concept of sustainable healthcare. Quality of life, wellbeing, disease prevention, home treatment, disease self-management, and access to treatment are some of the measures that emerged under the sustainable healthcare umbrella, especially in the treatment of chronic diseases. These needed changes from conventional healthcare entail economic, social and environmental tradeoffs. To understand the tradeoffs decision makers need more comprehensive frameworks and tools to help them evaluate the new dynamics, make informed choices and create more value to a broader set of stakeholders. This research presents a new application of S-LCA, healthcare services - specifically renal therapy services, with a focus on the stakeholder “consumers” - patients. The aim is to outline a methodology to identify and select impact categories, subcategories and indicators to assess the social impacts. The research compares two types of renal therapy services, in-clinic and home therapies, using a qualitative methods approach, focus groups and in-depth interviews. In addition, the assessment incorporates data from a previously conducted E-LCA for both therapies. The information extends the set of stakeholders studied to include local community and society. The results will provide insights to decision makers, such as healthcare service providers and product manufacturers, on social risks and benefits of in-clinic and home therapies; and the implications for a broader set of stakeholders. This activity is seen as a way to advance economic opportunities, add value to patients and contribute to product stewardship.

Keywords: S-LCA, qualitative methods, healthcare services, chronic diseases, sustainability, decision-making