Green ways to health project at Gartnavel Hospitals
Gartnavel General and Gartnavel Royal hospitals share a large campus in the west of Glasgow, together with general hospital services and office accommodation for many staff from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. Before the project, the walled garden outside the 19th century Superintendent’s house was boarded up and neglected. Volunteers re-planted the garden to create a peaceful space that’s open to all.
The green exercise partnership is a joint venture between Forestry Commission Scotland, Scottish Natural Heritage and Health Scotland (the health improvement board of the National Health Service in Scotland). The Partnership aims to build links between the health and environment sectors, following growing evidence that public health can be improved by getting people engaged with the natural environment.
Through its Greening the NHS Estate programme, the Partnership aims to establish at least one project in each of the eleven mainland Area Health Boards. The projects aim to show the health benefits that flow from positive investment in and management of the NHS estate – the greenspace around hospitals and healthcare centres.