101 - Implementation and Hope with Maria Gaden

Why do hospitals with good data, proven cases and clear economics still fail to implement sustainability solutions at scale?That is the question Maria Gaden is spending three years answering.Maria returns to the podcast as Chief of Development at Center for Sustainable Hospitals in Central Denmark Region, and as a public industrial PhD student at the University of Copenhagen's Globe Institute. Her research is in implementation science: what actually determines whether a sustainability intervention gets adopted across a whole hospital - not just one passionate department.In this conversation, Frederik and Maria cover:- Why the reusable surgical gown project has not yet launched and why she still calls it a success- Moving from "heroes" to systems, and from passion to governance- 38 hospital interviews across Denmark, a trip to Karolinska Institutet, and a visit to Singapore's Centre for Sustainable Medicine- How to start if you work inside a hospital and how it differs if you sit inside pharma- Why human irrationality is the real implementation barrier, and what to do about it**Timestamps**00:00  Welcome back01:30 New title, new PhD02:30 The reusable textiles project update07:30 Heroes to systems, passion to governance09:00 Why implementation science13:30 The research: 38 interviews, four countries17:30 Rationality is not the main driver22:30 Advice for healthcare professionals29:30 Advice for pharma and medtech38:30 What gives Maria hope**Pull quote (Maria):** *"We know the solutions. We have the data. So what is really hindering implementation right now? That is what I keep asking."***References and links from the episode**- [Center for Sustainable Hospitals, Central Denmark Region](https://www.rm.dk/om-os/organisation/center-for-baeredygtige-hospitaler/) [URL to confirm]- [Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen](https://globe.ku.dk/)- [Global Green and Healthy Hospitals (GGHH)](https://greenhospitals.org/)  free to join; hosted by Health Care Without Harm- [Health Care Without Harm  Europe](https://europe.noharm.org/)- [Centre for Sustainable Medicine, NUS Singapore](https://medicine.nus.edu.sg/cosm/)- [Karolinska Institutet](https://ki.se/en)- [*Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality* (free online)](https://hpmor.com/)  referenced by Frederik**Connect with Maria**- [Maria Gaden on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariagaden/)- [Center for Sustainable Hospitals](https://www.rm.dk/om-os/organisation/center-for-baeredygtige-hospitaler/) [URL to confirm]**You might also enjoy:**- Episode 090 ‚Äî *Data-Driven Decarbonisation of Danish Hospitals* (Rasmus & Thea, Region Midt)- Episode 087/086 ‚Äî *Sustainability insights from 290 nurses and clinicians* (Michael Maagaard, Region Midt)- Episode 044 & 043 ‚Äî Maria Gaden's previous appearances on the show**Host links**- [Joachim Almdal on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/joachim-espeland-almdal-017a6973/)- [Frederik van Deurs on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/frederikvandeurs/)- [Care Pathway Consulting](https://carepathwayconsulting.com)