The Healing Garden

Produkt

The innovation ‘The Healing Garden’ addresses two problems. The first is the limited access of wheelchair users to rehabilitation: insufficient frequency and number of treatments, long waiting periods for an appointment refunded by the National Health Fund, difficulties in obtaining a referral to a specialist, infrequent rehabilitation and treatments in medical resorts. The second problem is the inability of wheelchair users to be in the nature, even in their own gardens. These people are unable to bend down, lift a heavy watering can or dig in the soil, and they may also have additional difficulties navigating narrow alleys.

The innovation 'The Healing Garden' includes the creation of a hortitherapy garden which enables wheelchair users to do the physical work related to growing plants. Hortiterapy, or garden therapy or horticultural therapy, is a modern method of occupational therapy using broadly understood gardening as well as passive and active resting in the garden. As wheelchair users cannot comfortably reach the ground, the innovation involves creating raised beds in the garden. Their structure allows the wheelchair user to roll under the pots, which makes the gardening significantly easier. The innovation aims, among other things, to build a community of people with mobility impairments who will share the responsibility of caring for the garden. As part of the innovation trial, handbooks have been developed on how to start a garden on your own and how to organize the work.

People with mobility impairments who, for health or age reasons, are unable to cultivate gardens at ground level.

Rehabilitation centers Medical resorts Residential nursing homes and other care facilities Organizations supporting wheelchair users Horticultural schools and universities

A model garden for horticultural therapy adapted to the needs of wheelchair users, located on the premises of the Children and Youth Rehabilitation Center "Helenów" in Warszawa Five handbooks on how to build, fund and design a garden for horticultural therapy

Thanks to this innovation, people who had never had the chance to work in the garden before, were able to plant, weed and water the garden comfortably and independently (i.e. without having to get down from the wheelchair). Wheelchair users met new people and made new friends, tried new activities or experienced the therapeutic effects of gardening.

Tak

A project coordinator A landscape designer Subcontractors (construction of flowerbeds, paving, compost bin, etc.)

An institution to provide premises for a garden Building materials for raised beds: e.g. wood, soil, expanded clay aggregate, plants A design for the garden Storage to protect the plants in winter Space for tools and a compost bin

Grupa nieformalna

Inkubator pomysłów [2020-23]