The gardens of the 83-year-old Helderberg Hospital will get a much needed facelift with the establishment of a fynbos garden this month.
Stellenbosch University’s Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) is collaborating with NPO Greenpop to establish the fynbos garden at the Somerset West health facility, and calls on residents to donate toward the initiative.
The FMHS and Greenpop plan to reinvigorate the hospital’s garden through landscaping and planting fynbos in front of the primary hospital building as well as on two islands in the parking area, where there is currently no vegetation. The FMHS also has a prefabricated learning centre on the grounds of the hospital, used by students as part of the faculty’s clinical rotation programme.
Professor Bob Mash, chairperson of the FMHS Dean’s Advisory Committee on Environmental Sustainability, said the plan is to restore the local ecosystem, through the planting of fynbos immediately outside the hospital. “The funds we are raising will go directly toward reinvigorating the hospital garden. This includes landscaping services and acquiring fynbos for the earmarked areas,” he related.
“Gardens like the one planned at Helderberg Hospital will contribute to creating another fynbos corridor across the Cape Flats from Table Mountain. The fynbos garden will enable pollinators to move and be restored which affects plants, insects and animals in the greater Western Cape.”
Anita Theron, quality manager at Helderberg Hospital, believes the fynbos garden enhance the overall look of the facility, assist in reducing stress and help to improve clinical outcomes in many cases. Just the ability to walk or sit in a green space would help to improve both patient’s and staff’s mood and focus, Theron related.
“The psychological and physical well-being of staff and patients are equally important,” she pointed out. “We know establishing a beautiful garden will contribute to all levels of health care.”
Helderberg Hospital serves the residents of communities across the Helderberg basin and employs 344 staff members. Parts of the facility were recently upgraded to address the needs of its growing patient population. “A fynbos garden will complete our vision for a fully functioning hospital that provides excellent healthcare in a well-maintained building with a calming, mood-boosting garden,” Theron added.
The Helderberg Hospital team together with Greenpop and the FMHS will host plant days on Saturday 6 and 13 August. To sign up for a plant day, visit https://bit.ly/GP_FFF_HelderbergH
V To donate to Helderberg Hospital’s fynbos garden, visit www.givengain.com/cc/greening-the-helderberg-hospital.
V For more information, contact Christine Groenewald at clgroenewald@sun.ac.za or on 084 270 4489; or Carla Wessels at carla@greenpop.org or on 079 262 3005.
