RESEARCH
The Impact of a Hospital Garden on Pregnant Women and Their Partners
Summary
The research conducted at the Legacy Emanuel Medical Center in Portland, Oregon, aimed to create a therapeutic garden for patients, families, and caregivers to promote well-being and reduce stress. This project, supported by the Tom and Kitty Stoner Foundation’s National Nature Sacred Awards, incorporated insights from various fields including environmental psychology and landscape architecture. The garden was designed to improve health care environments by reducing stress and its associated physical impacts. Over time, this initiative grew to include multiple therapeutic gardens across several hospitals.
The study found that these gardens provided significant benefits for those exposed to high-stress clinical environments, including patients in labor, their families, and nursing staff. The gardens were designed to cater to a wide range of users, supporting their psychological, physical, and spiritual needs. The success of this project highlights the importance of incorporating nature into health care settings to enhance overall well-being.
