Community members are making a charity appeal to create a garden for stroke rehabilitation patients in Walsall, England.
Walsall Healthcare’s Well Wishers charity and the borough’s mayor work alongside the stroke rehabilitation unit at Hollybank House in Willenhall to raise £20,000 for the project.
The appeal aims to transform the grounds to include a potting area, sensory spot and seating area for stroke rehabilitation patients, visitors and staff to use.
“Our rehab colleagues told us that a garden would be really beneficial because not only does it encourage upper and lower limb therapy but it will aid with patients and their families’ sense of mental health and wellbeing, to be able to sit in the fresh air and experience a change of surroundings,” Georgie Westley, fundraising manager, told the Express & Star.
“Add to this a sensory area and a seating area and it’s not hard to imagine the lovely garden we could create. This is a project that has the community at its heart and we want to get local schools, businesses and groups involved.”
Alison Stone, clinical lead, added: “A stroke can be devastating for patients and their families so rehabilitation is vitally important.
“Gardening will be beneficial in all aspects of a patient’s recovery, from physio, occupational therapy, speech and language and psychology. The interaction with other patients I am sure will boost patient confidence and give a sense of normality, as gardening is a hobby of many of our patients prior to experiencing a stroke.”
This week an open day is being held at Hollybank House for people to look at the plans and get involved and a local artist will be unveiling the oil painting she has done to capture the vision of the fundraising.
Research from the Society for Participatory Medicine on stroke patients’ experience of performing gardening as part of their rehabilitation programme has found that gardening was healing and therapeutic and concluded that contact with plants could help fulfil post-stroke patients’ care needs and expectations.
