For more than a year, the Department of Occupational Therapy in the College of Health Professions at the UT Health Science Center has partnered with the Memphis Mental Health Institute (MMHI) to plant sensory gardens and conduct student-led life groups for patients at the institute.
The partnership gives occupational therapy students an opportunity to engage in the community and provide support to patients at the institute under faculty supervision. They have led hands-on sensory activities and have grown edible plants in outdoor and indoor gardens including radishes, Swiss chard, and nasturtium.
“The staff and the patients there are great. A lot of them are very excited to work with us. It’s been a nice way to collaborate with different professionals in the health field and to work with potential clients, because mental health is something that will come about in whichever setting you decide to work,” said Modina Reid, one of many occupational therapy students that have participated in serving at the institute. “It’s important to know how to engage and work with different types of patients. I’ve been really appreciative of the opportunity, and I have enjoyed every moment that I’ve spent at MMHI.”
After the initial meeting with the MMHI staff in 2022, Anne Zachry, PhD, OTR/L, chair and associate professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy, and Lauren Woods, PhD, OTR/L, assistant professor and admissions chair, began coordinating and overseeing the occupational therapy student groups.
“It was extremely exciting to see them working with actual clients in that setting, interacting with them, and providing support as needed through the group interventions. Dr. Woods continued with the groups. Initially, we did not know that it would be an ongoing relationship, but MMHI was so pleased with the way everything went, they asked if we could continue it,” Dr. Zachry said. “It’s beneficial to all parties because our students benefit from getting actual hands-on experience, and MMHI benefits because they don’t have an occupational therapist on staff.”
Starting in the fall of 2022, students from the community mental health course taught by Dr. Woods began providing sessions at the institute. Dr. Woods said that MMHI is focusing on ways to reduce their seclusion and restraint rates.
“I planned and led all the sessions, and the students were with me to help facilitate. We held groups on coping skills and mindfulness activities, and we would hold them outside. Many of the residents are often indoors, so getting out into the courtyard is a really big deal,” said Dr. Woods.
Continuing in the spring of 2023 through another course taught by Dr. Woods on leading therapeutic groups, the students designed and led small groups at the institute, under Dr. Woods’ supervision.
“One of the sessions the students planned in the spring was making suncatchers out of plates with clear contact paper, and they used tissue paper that was scented by different essential oils that were edible. So, everything is safe,” said Dr. Woods. “And the patients at MMHI decorated it with edible herbs like rosemary, cilantro, and parsley. They displayed them, and it looks really nice through their windows.”
Around Thanksgiving the same year, the groups held activities on gratitude with hands-on arts and crafts in each session.
“There’s also a psychiatrist there who is a master gardener, and she did an impromptu session talking about how to help nurture the seeds, help them grow, and consider different environments,” Dr. Woods said.
Dr. Woods also said the students have learned how to establish rapport with others who may be different from them. “It is also erasing the stigma and helping them see that these are people, and they’ve had life happen to them,” Dr. Woods said.
“I really enjoyed watching how the students interacted with the patients,” said Natalie Golden, treatment mall staff at Memphis Mental Health Institute. “They introduced ideas and projects that gave patients different ways to cope with situations once they left the hospital. The one project that stuck out to me the most was the outside garden. The patients were enthusiastic about the projects and getting to watch the plants grow as well as trying the vegetables once they were ready to harvest. I think that introducing these kinds of groups was an excellent idea. I can’t wait until the patients return to the group in the fall.”
“A lot of the groups are about mindfulness and trying to gain a different outlook and perspective on life. Even though the overarching topic is gardening, it’s about finding things you want to do in your life,” said Meredith Dowden, occupational therapy student. “There is a lot of potential for carryover from the things we’re talking about, and we hope that each experience gives the participants a chance to interact with different smells, textures, and colors that make them feel more in touch with themselves and at home while they’re at MMHI.”
“We had this activity called ‘fill my cup’ which involved filling your empty cup with the names of things that make you happy if you feel down,” said Akosua Odei, occupational therapy student. “They rarely go outside, so we just give them the right options. Some people wrote planting, coloring, singing, and some people said praying, so it just makes them happy.”
Regina Acuna, Memphis native and occupational therapy student, said one of her great values is to serve and connect with the Memphis community.
“We acknowledge that mental health is a big area that needs to be addressed in order to fulfill those gaps in our community. We’re always talking about physical health, but mental health is sometimes overlooked,” Acuna said. “We understand the importance of having a balance of both to allow individuals to thrive. So, we are very grateful to be able to partner with MMHI to get those hands-on experiences with services to people we know have been deprived of this part of their health.”
Upcoming sessions will be held this fall at the institute and will be offered as community service hours for the occupational therapy students, separate from a course.
“I’ve already given them (students) the sign-up sheet, and it filled up within an hour or less. They were motivated and wanted to do it even when they wouldn’t get credit for a course or a grade attached to it,” Dr. Woods said. “I feel like that is an important life skill too; doing things just because you want to give, not because you will get a material reward for it. I feel like they are learning a lot of skills.”
In the future, MMHI has requested for the department to establish a sensory room at the institute to further promote health and wellness for the patients.
“By the end of the group session, we commonly see mood improvements and overall satisfaction as evidenced by smiling faces of the participants. They often ask when we’ll be coming back for another group session and inform us that they would like to attend. The collaboration with MMHI provides us with real-life, hands-on experience while offering therapeutic interventions to the group participants,” Reid said.