A message of hope can go a long way
Imagine that it’s your first day as an inpatient on a mental health unit. When you walk through the doors, you might feel scared that no one will understand what you are going through or worried that you won’t overcome your illness.
Now imagine how that experience would be brightened by messages of hope on the walls as soon as you enter the unit from people with lived experience.
“Stay positive!” “Life’s what you make it. There’s hope.” “Strive for perfection and you can achieve excellence.” These are all messages of hope that former patients on the Orchard 2 unit at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton’s West 5th Campus posted when they were discharged, for incoming patients.
During a night shift, Terry O’Connor, Registered Nurse, painted a tree mural as the unit’s way to communicate “Messages of Hope” as part of St. Joe’s Safewards initiative. It was a fun and creative way to tie together the name of the unit, Orchard, with a means to leave something behind for inspiration.
Safewards is a model of care within the Mental Health and Addiction Program to improve safety. It is an internationally recognized program that engages both staff and patients in a positive and proactive way to reduce tension and conflict. The program has 10 interventions, including Messages of Hope, which can be implemented together or selectively based on each unit’s individual needs and culture.
“There are some patients who have a difficult time here because they are struggling with mental illnesses. We discuss the option to put a message of hope on the wall the day of discharge, and it’s always amazing to see the willingness of those same patients to leave a message of inspiration behind,” says Candice Babbey, Social Worker.
Each mental health and addiction unit has created their own way to communicate messages of hope based on collaborative feedback and ideas from staff and patients. Other examples of messages include paintings, pottery, and legacy boxes – boxes made by current patients to include messages of hope to pass on to future patients.
“It was inspired by the idea to give patients the opportunity to express themselves, and also capture their confidence in their journey and their recovery,” describes Laura Bromwich, Art Therapist. “They get to teach other people about the experience that they’ve had and through that exploration they get to help other people who are in need at the hospital.”
For more information on St. Joe's Safewards initiative, visit www.stjoes.ca/Safewards