Setting policy on environmental issues. Interview by Karen Gardner.

Perhaps more than any other type of institution, hospitals are expected to be good neighbors, which involves respect for the community and respect for the environment. Louis Rasmussen, board chairman of Carondolet Health Corp., Kansas City, MO (the parent company for Saint Joseph Health Center, a 300-bed acute care hospital in Kansas City), and a retired executive of Kansas City Power and Light Co., sees the board's role in setting responsible environmental policy for the hospital as pivotal. In 1991, Rasmussen served on the American Hospital Association's Ad Hoc Committee on Recycling. Currently, he is a member of the AHA's Congress of Hospital Trustees. Participation in these activities, as well as his professional background in both engineering and law, gives him a broad view of both environmental issues and governance. Recently, Rasmussen spoke with Trustee editor Karen Gardner about the environmental issues confronting hospitals today and the board's role in dealing with those issues.