Therapeutic Garden Design for Hospitals and Rehabilitation Centres

Waiting rooms in some hospitals open to beautifully landscaped gardens and well-arranged corridors. Imagine how relaxed the family and the patient feel when it comes to natural surroundings. Prevailing fear of operation theatres, nurses and doctors is bound to disappear.

Patients and medical staff in many case studies have quoted about being able to connect to the trees, bees, birds and butterflies. It all gave them a sense of satisfaction. They felt at ease, they did not have to prove to anyone, the reason of their physical and mental disorder, nor the need to recover at the pace dictated by others.

Institutionalized ageing people showed less anxiety and tension. Aggressiveness tended to diminish with horticultural therapies. Digging into the soil, transplanting a sapling created a sense of belonging to earth. Feeding the birds alongside the Greenhouse was an attractive outdoor activity to many. Similarly, watering the plants was self-satisfying. There could be many such activities for inhabitants to enhance the quality of life without any comparison and measurements. Each one is at his own pace.

A well-crafted landscape can silence the noise pollution from an urban location. Landscapes, water features can mask the horns from rushing loud vehicles and noise from crowded buildings. It can be an oasis, a place where the patients and staff can stroll, relax and chat with fellow folks.

Waterfall creates a soothing sound, ornamental pebbles and rocks can add to the aesthetics. Fish and frogs can add to the still life. If required, there can be a place for the patient to touch water, converse with the beings in water roaming freely.

Flowering trees, plants and shrubs full of blossoms are a visual treat. And so are the fragrances emanating from the plants. Both play a major role in plant-person relationship. Either they can be arranged together in asymmetric fashion or separately for aesthetics depending on space availability.

Moving around should be without obstacles. A pathway defining the borders, railings or some kind of support for patients and wheelchair commuting should be possible.

Safety for patients and staff is of utmost importance. Patients showing inclination to psychosomatic disorders should be accompanied with a helper. Prevention of accidents, minimizing such zones, supporting mechanisms and securing the slippery water features are critical and MUST. We don’t want patients going from recovered state to critical by falling fatalities. Boundaries need to be secured for patients meandering into ‘No Entry’ zones.

• The Role and Application of Horticultural Therapy With Institutionalized Older People A thesis submitted to: The School of Social Work Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research McGill University, Montreal by Mary Jane McDowell August, 1997
• Designing a Healing Garden for Three Patient Populations Based on Research, Theory, Observation and Interviews by Hayes Rogers Fairchild