Emergent climate protection strategies in German hospitals: A cluster analysis

PLOS One | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0312661 May 16, 2025 8 / 18 the mean values (mv) for each cluster, as evidenced by p-values for the F-statistic test being less than 0.05. Significant differ- ences include hospital characteristics, the implementation of climate actions, and climate protection initiatives and projects. A radar chart for the clusters enabled in-depth profiling of emergent strategies for climate protection (see Fig. 1). The first cluster is labeled “Aspiring Novices”, as it comprises hospitals with little leadership focus on climate protection, all the Fig 1. Centroids. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0312661.g001 Table 3. Results of MANOVA. Centroids MANOVA Test Statistics Characteristics (mv) Cluster 1 (n = 66) Cluster 2 (n = 54) Cluster 3 (n = 27) Cluster 4 (n = 58) F Sig. Strategic planning 2.31 3.10 4.65 6.10 65.733 <.001 Established sustainability requirements for suppliers, according to the Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chains 1.94 3.89 4.20 5.39 44.387 <.001 Allocating human resources 1.39 1.89 5.37 4.98 122.375 <.001 Hospital administrative leadership´s pioneering role 2.98 5.23 4.95 6.65 73.748 <.001 Regular communication about carbon footprint performance indicators 1.37 2.34 2.01 4.96 64.256 <.001 Opportunity to contribute ideas for implementing climate actions 4.67 5.51 6.46 6.55 17.296 <.001 Regular meetings for climate protection 1.37 2.77 3.54 5.40 60.387 <.001 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0312661.t001