Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Fall 2011 - (Page 5)

JOANNE M. WESTPHAL, MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY You are one of the few individuals in the world who is both a practicing physician and landscape architect. How did these two disciplines merge for you? JW: The integration of these two fields occurred “REMAINING TRUE TO MY CONVICTIONS THAT ONE SHOULD NOT DESIGN IN A FIELD OF UNFAMILIARITY, I ENROLLED IN MEDICAL SCHOOL AND COMPLETED A MEDICAL DEGREE. I MAINTAIN MY LICENSE IN MEDICINE TO MAINTAIN MY CREDIBILITY AS A LANDSCAPE DESIGNER WHO UNDERSTANDS THE LIMITATIONS OF PATIENT GROUPS AND THE RIGORS OF MEDICAL PRACTICE.” my convictions that one should not design in a field of unfamiliarity, I enrolled in medical school and completed a medical degree. I maintain my license in medicine to maintain my credibility as a landscape designer who understands the limitations of patient groups and the rigors of medical practice. You collaborated on a therapeutic garden design with Julie Galbraith of the San Diego Recreation and Parks Departments’ on the creation of a garden for Alzheimer's patients in Michigan. What has been learned that supports the business case? JW: In this study, a site design produced by out of necessity. In the early 1990s, Western medicine was principally focused on traditional medical practices—i.e., pharmaceuticals or surgery. Interest in Eastern medical practices were suspect by most U.S. clinicians, as were practices that heralded to the pre-Germ Theory of Disease era in the 1880s when gardens and open space were a part of medical practice. Caregivers in contemporary institutional settings—nursing homes, assisted living complexes, select hospital wings etc. —were calling for outdoor areas where patients/residents could enjoy fresh air, receive treatment (when appropriate) and exercise. To design for patient groups requires at least some knowledge about medicine and treatment protocols. Lacking this training, I sought help from the faculty at the two medical schools on the MSU campus, and I was promptly rebuffed by the clinicians who felt therapeutic garden design was at best “window dressing” for hospital settings. Receiving no support, but remaining true to two undergraduate seniors in landscape architecture was constructed to serve residents of an Alzheimer’s wing of the Martin Luther Nursing Home in Holt, Michigan. Using a modified version of a method developed by Roger Ulrich (1984) to measure the effects of nature on postsurgical patients in a hospital, we examined the health benefits of garden use and exposure on 18 dementia residents at the home. The health benefits were based on eight variables required by state law and recorded on a daily basis by nursing staff. In a double-blind review of these eight variables and the daily amount of time that a resident spent outdoors in the garden, we found significant differences in seven of the eight variables being examined. Among the variables most important to health status of Alzheimer’s patients, we noted significant decreases in aggressive and nonaggressive behavior; improvements in weight, heart rate and blood pressure readings; and reduced requests for non-prescription medications for residents spending an average of 10 minutes per day in the garden. Those spending less than five minutes per day in the garden continued to maintain, or actually got worse, in the number of behavioral problems affecting staff or other residents. Two years of data collection took place, until the facility changed ownership, and staffing changes resulted in a discontinuation of the study. Behavioral problems on a dementia wing of a nursing home are one of several stress enhancing sources for nursing staff, often leading to burn-out. The economic costs associated with hiring replacement staff, particularly nurses, can be enormous. Likewise, perceptions of quality of life and improvements in the health status of LIVING ARCHITECTURE MONITOR FALL 2011 5

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Fall 2011

Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Fall 2011
Contents
From the Founder
Strata
On the Roof With…
Research
Marketing
Policy: The Game Changer
Policy: Toronto’s Green Roof by-Law
Policy: Energy Code Break-Through
Tools
GRHC: Update
GRHC: Welcome New Members
On Spec

Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Fall 2011