In the heart of East London, something quite special is happening. At the Homerton Healthcare Foundation NHS Trust, a dedicated horticultural therapist is using the power of nature to transform patient care and staff wellbeing.
Emma Myers, lifelong gardener and occupational therapist, works with patients and staff to support a deeper connection with nature to improve mental and physical health.
“I provide meaningful engagement in occupation, which in this case is horticulture, in a therapeutic way,” explains Emma. Working across various departments, from stroke rehabilitation to mental health services, she uses gardening activities to support patients’ recovery and improve their quality of life in a sustainable way.
The benefits of horticultural therapy are far-reaching. “The social connection that comes through therapeutic gardening is massive,” Emma notes. Patients who might otherwise be isolated in their hospital rooms come together in garden spaces, sharing experiences and building relationships.
But it’s not just about socialising. Horticultural therapy offers physical benefits too. Activities are carefully graded to provide the “just right challenge” for each patient, whether that’s improving dexterity through seed planting or building strength and mobility through watering and weeding.
One of the trust’s recent success stories is a new garden for the Graham Stroke Unit. Designed with input from patients, families and staff, it’s fully wheelchair accessible and packed with sensory experiences. “When you’re lying on your back, looking at the ceiling all day, coming into the garden is like going on holiday,” one patient remarked.
The impact extends beyond patients. Staff wellbeing sessions in the gardens provide much-needed respite from the stresses of hospital work. Even visitors benefit from the peaceful green spaces scattered throughout the hospital grounds.
So why should hospitals invest in green spaces and horticultural therapy? Emma is passionate about the multiple benefits: “The gains are so broad. We are giving people sustainable therapeutic intervention, making the environment beautiful and connecting to how we’re growing food. With some vision and funding we can create functional therapeutic environments in healthcare settings that support the cost of living crisis through access to fresh, local food and respond to climate change through active planting. Hospitals and healthcare settings should be exemplary healthy environments that bring people together”. From improved patient outcomes to staff retention and community engagement, the case for healthcare in green spaces is compelling.
Moreover, there’s a growing body of global research supporting the benefits of therapeutic horticulture. Emma recently attended the International People Plant Symposium, where academics and practitioners from around the world shared their findings. “There is so much evidence across so many client groups demonstrating the incredible visible benefits of therapeutic growing for people’s health and wellbeing,” Emma explains.
As healthcare systems worldwide grapple with increasing demands and limited resources, innovative approaches like horticultural therapy offer a promising path forward. By harnessing the healing power of nature, hospitals can create environments that nurture not just physical health, but mental and emotional wellbeing too. This is vital not just for effective recovery, but for the prevention of illness in the first place – one of the pillars of sustainable healthcare and a key part of the Government’s NHS strategy going forwards.
As the gardens at Homerton continue to thrive, they stand as living proof of the transformative power of bringing nature into healthcare settings. Emma’s final words on the subject, sum it up: “As a trust, Homerton are open to trying new things and it’s taken no time at all to see the benefits. The feedback from patients, from staff, from visitors has been universally phenomenally positive. Every healthcare setting should be participating in horticultural therapy for the wellbeing of their patients, for the wellbeing of their staff and the wellbeing of the environment. We’re having an impact on people at all levels, whether you’re participating in growing sessions or by walking through and noticing the beauty. It gives you a moment in your day, a potentially very stressful day, where you can connect to nature. And it’s really fun and joyful and wonderful and that means it’s ultimately an incredibly accessible and inclusive activity.”