Neurosurgery Team Wins Runner-Up Award at Pitt Sustainability Challenge

Pittsburgh, November 24, 2025 — The neurosurgery team of Nitin Agarwal, MD, Shaunak Patil, Janam Patel, and Ayesha Waheed was one of three teams selected for runner-up awards at the recent University of Pittsburgh’s Sustainability in Healthcare Challenge competition for their project “Closing the Loop: A Multi-Layer Mask System to Capture, Convert, and Neutralize Anesthetic Gases.”

About the Sustainability in Healthcare Challenge

The Sustainability in Healthcare Challenge is a university-wide initiative that addresses the significant environmental and social impact of the healthcare sector. It involves transforming practices to reduce the healthcare system’s carbon footprint, waste, and resource consumption, while also improving social well-being and equity. This includes tackling waste, energy use, supply chain inefficiencies, and promoting sustainable practices through education and policy.

One of the goals of the program is to move promising projects forward and quickly translate innovative research into active practice in the public space.

Award Details

Runner-up teams each received $25,000 to support their projects with the winner receiving $50,000. Awards were made possible by a collaboration among Pitt’s Office of Multidisciplinary Innovations (MDI), the Office of Sustainability in the Health Sciences (OSHS), and the Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation.

Innovative Solution for Healthcare Sustainability

The team’s project, “Closing the Loop: A Multi-Layer Mask System to Capture, Convert, and Neutralize Anesthetic Gases,” addresses a critical environmental challenge in operating rooms. Anesthetic gases are potent greenhouse gases that contribute significantly to healthcare’s carbon footprint. This innovative mask system represents a practical solution to capture and neutralize these gases, preventing their release into the atmosphere.

Looking Forward

This recognition highlights Pitt Neurosurgery and SCOLI’s commitment to innovation and sustainability in healthcare. The award funding will support the team’s continued development and implementation of this important environmental solution, moving it closer to real-world application in clinical settings.

The team’s achievement demonstrates how neurosurgical innovation can extend beyond patient care to address broader environmental challenges, contributing to a more sustainable future for healthcare delivery.