Director of Mental Health Drug & Alcohol Andrea Taylor, Michelle Lawrence and Elisabeth Manning
Healing hearts and minds at Macquarie A traditional healing garden is providing comfort for mental health consumers and visitors to Macquarie Hospital while honouring the connection between land and the indigenous custodians.
traditional healing garden serves as a vital resource for the First Nations Recovery Group within the hospital’s community. “By incorporating traditional medicinal plants, the garden becomes a living symbol of healing, both physically and spiritually,” she said. “The First Nations Recovery Group’s consumers can actively engage with the plants, learning about their historical uses and medicinal properties, which have been passed down through generations. “This empowering experience not only enables individuals to reconnect with their cultural heritage but also helps promote a sense of belonging and pride in their Indigenous identity.”
Situated on the lands of the Burramattagal people of the Darug nation, the medicinal plant garden, pays tribute to their wisdom their traditional healing practices. The traditional healing garden at Macquarie Hospital not only serves as a place of cultural significance and healing for the First Nations community but also offers a peaceful and reflective space for the hospital staff and consumers. Mental Health Drug and Alcohol Aboriginal Clinical Lead Michelle Lawrence said the PLASTIC FREE JULY Sustainability efforts have been in full swing at Mona Vale Hospital (MVH) and Brookvale Community Health Centre (BCHC) as part of Plastic Free July. Plastic Free July is a global movement that helps millions of people be part of the solution to plastic pollution, with a focus on encouraging the use of single-use coffee cups. Participating in the movement was encouraged by the MVH and the BCHC Sustainability Committee which is chaired by A/General Manager MVH Mathivanan Sakthivel. Mathivanan said the committee are always looking for ways to contribute to NSLHD’s planetary health efforts on the journey to net zero. “We work hard to reinforce simple things that can be done by reminding our teams to be conscious about the use of plastic items where they can,” he said. “Plastic Free July has been a great opportunity to raise some awareness about small changes having a significant impact of a period of time.
“We also try and make these efforts the whole year round. We’ve had our makeshift ‘recycle centre’ set up at BCHC in the population health promotion office for coffee cups, reusable bowls, stationary, batteries and some nice treats to thank staff for their efforts.”
Student family health nurse at Mona Vale BCHC, Michaela using her reusable coffee cup and water bottle
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