The Morningside Mirror 10.2014

the morningside mirror Autumn 2014

Grounds for Change

Morningside Mirror was a magazine published by patients and staff at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital between the years 1845 and 1974.

Interviews by: Kirsten Lloyd Contributors to this issue: Karina Davies Sean Harper Moria MacFarlane Albert Nicholson Alison Robertson Sarah Stevenson Patricia Whalley

If you would like to find out about this and other related projects, call Anne or Trevor on 0131 537 6127 or if you are in the hospital ext. 46127, email glasshouses@artlinkedinburgh.co.uk or just drop by the Glasshouses.

Grounds for Change

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Welcome to the Morningside Mirror This edition is all about change, but perhaps not quite in the way you expect.

You’ll no doubt be aware that the Royal Edinburgh Hospital (REH) is undergoing a major transformation; a brand new campus will emerge on the existing site in the next few years and the ground works are already underway. Not all the changes will be permanent, but it’s clear that we need to think about how we can offset their impact on the hospital’s community during the period of change.

To get an idea of what is important to you we asked two questions. We asked patients, “Was there a place, a person, or an experience within the hospital that you felt was positive, or which helped you on your road to recovery”, and we asked

staff “What is your favourite part of the hospital”.

At a recent meeting, members of the Patient’s Council proposed that we focus primarily on patients’ perspectives. So for this edition our pages are largely filled with patients’ experiences, we’ve also included a few responses from staff as the changes impact on everyone within the REH. And finally, we want to tell you a story about a strange coincidence that happened during the production of this edition, a story that connects generations of the same family through the fascinating history of this hospital.

We hope you enjoy your read.

Karina Davies:

Making artworks

For one and a half hours a week Karina comes to the Glasshouses and draws.

“I popped over when I was staying here earlier in the year just to find out what it was all about and I’ve gone on from there. The art classes have really been my saving grace. I’m a full time carer and they’ve given me a breathing space, a chance to just focus on myself. The place itself is very calming and I come here for a bit of serenity.”

Though Karina only took up art in the Spring of this year she clearly has a genuine talent and has already exhibited her work in the Artlink corridor. “Each week I gather flowers from the garden at the Glasshouses, get out my pastels, make some coffee and get going on a new piece. I love being involved, I love the colours, and I love meeting new people.

It’s a couple of hours that I can get lost in my work and yes, it’s fair to say that my creative passions have been well and truly ignited.”

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Alison Robertson:

Standing underneath the plum tree

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Just next to the Glasshouses, stands a group of apple trees. Alison Robertson didn’t know it at the time but in amongst them is a plum tree. “I was working away as usual on The Horticulture Project – or the Horti Project as we used to call it – which was run by Ruth from Occupational Therapy when we heard someone say that the plums were ready to be picked. We didn’t even know the tree was there but when we all headed outside into the sunshine we saw that it was absolutely laden with fruit.” Shaking the branches, reaching up as high as they could and even inventing new tools, Alison remembers the fun they all had trying to harvest the plums. After their collaborative efforts, everyone had a chance to enjoy the results. “It was one of those perfect days,” she says, “nature provided and there was enough for

everyone, even the birds and rabbits got their share of the fallen fruits lying on the ground”.

Her experiences with the Horti Project made a deep impression on Alison.

“Being outside and active gave me a new perspective” she says. “The smell and feel of the soil as it ran through my fingers, the chatter by the propagator and tasting freshly picked plums for the first time in my life all helped me on the road to recovery.” She even began to enjoy a bit of drizzle when it fell, “it didn’t just cool me down after all that hard work, it gave the flowers a much needed drink too! At a time when my depression made me feel that everything was wrong and nothing worked, gardening, horticulture and participating in the flow of nature really nourished my soul and reset my mind.”

Sarah Stevenson:

Planting seedlings

Sarah Stevenson attends the gardening club once a week and she share’s Alison’s sentiments. “It’s great to be in the gardens and the Glasshouses, they’re really special places that are away from the stale air of the hospital wards”. But she’s keen to point out that it’s not just the open spaces and relaxed atmosphere that she appreciates – the plants themselves have inspired her. “Recently I’ve being doing some transplanting work, using a fork and

a spoon to tuck tiny cabbage plants into the soil and separating strands of baby leeks which just look like fragile threads. It’s really delicate work and it involves a lot of care and attention.

But watching those seedlings strain against difficult circumstances and push through to become strong thriving plants has meant a great deal me. It’s helped me to think about how people can also get through hard and challenging situations.”

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Albert Nicholson:

Sitting in the quiet room

I’m on the Patients’ Council and the Management Committee. There are four of us and we visit patients on the wards to ask them how they’re getting on, and to find out if they’re having any problems with their stay in hospital. Perhaps the paintwork is bad or the beds are damp – anything really. It’s called ‘collective advocacy’ and we’re trying to help build a better atmosphere for everyone, including staff.

On a personal level, I’ve got a strong connection to my spiritual side and

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I believe in a more holistic approach to mental healthcare, one that isn’t dependent on drugs. Care is really about treating people with kindness, understanding and developing an awareness of where they’re coming from.

I don’t see much of it. The quiet room is the only place that I’ve felt at peace in the hospital grounds. Funnily enough I remember the same room when it was Ward 1, back around the time of my first admission a few decades ago. Now it’s a safe, spiritual place which is really being used - just great.

Patricia Whalley:

Meetings around the table

“It’s just an ordinary wooden table but it has meant a lot to me” says Patricia Whalley. Taking up most of the kitchen area in the Glasshouses this table certainly isn’t much to look at but it’s what has happened around, over and on top of it that made a big difference to her life. “It was there that I learnt new skills in flower arranging, planted seeds and watched the seasons change. Over the years lots of conversations have flowed across its surface. Occasionally someone around the table would become distressed, but that was okay, people were allowed to share their feelings and there was a lot of empathy.”

For Patricia this table was an anchor in a safe environment. “It was a familiar and secure spot. From there I could see that things weren’t stuck, the cycles of life were moving forwards.” The experiences she gained around this simple piece of furniture gave her a new confidence that enabled her to volunteer with the Patients’ Council. “But the most significant point was when I knew it was time to leave the table, the kitchen, the glasshouses and the hospital behind to progress with the next stage of my recovery. I realised myself that it was time to move on.”

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Comiston Ward:

Reminders of home

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In a recovery process, personal objects can often make a big difference. Carla Rafferty, the Charge Nurse on the Comiston Ward, described some of the ways that she and her team help patients to think about reintegrating into their homes and communities after a stay in hospital. “Home visits are a really useful way to make new connections” she said. “Seeing patients in the context of their home environments gives us a real insight into their interests, whether it be a love of cats or a passion for crime fiction. Knowing a bit more about what

makes individuals tic leads to new conversations that can really help with rehabilitation. While we’re out and about we often encourage patients to select items to bring back into the ward because we know that these objects can bring a lot of comfort. Mugs are a really popular choice and I can understand why. Not only are they recognisable objects that help to make the environment less clinical, they remind our patients that they’re on a recovery path that will take them home. Besides, I know that there’s nothing better than the taste of tea from your own mug!”

My favourite place “For me it has to be the extent and the expanse of the hospital grounds. In some places you can actually feel like you’re in the countryside – to be able to get a connection with nature in the hospital grounds is really important.”

Moira MacFarlane

“There are several benches dotted around the grounds that have great views of the trees in the grounds, trees that were planted a long time ago – if I have time, I love to grab a sandwich and have my lunch on one of the benches.”

Sean Harper

“I really like that I can see a variety of wildlife just by looking out of the windows of the hospital. Taking 5 minutes to gaze at rabbits, squirrels and a number of different species of birds can often help to reduce my stress levels.”

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Kirsten Lloyd:

Strange connections woven through time…

Back in July I was invited to write another edition of the Morningside Mirror. I’ve been doing this for a few years now. My day job involves arranging photographs on the walls of an art gallery and I really appreciate these annual opportunities to come to the Royal Edinburgh Hospital and discover first-hand how art and creativity affect the daily lives of staff and patients here.

Last year was particularly special as I was asked to focus on the history of the Hospital as part of the Bicentennial celebrations. This place has played a part in the family histories of many of the city’s residents and I’m no different – my grandfather (or papa as we knew him) was admitted in the mid 1960s for a few weeks. While he was here he participated in some of the craft workshops organised for patients and the woven footstool that he made is now in my brother’s flat in Leith. Though I like to think this is for sentimental reasons it’s more likely because it’s orange and black – the colours of his football team.

When I returned to the Glasshouses in early August to interview Albert, Sarah and Karina for the new Morningside Mirror, I found a copy of the 2013 edition.

We were all so busy with the celebrations last year I hadn’t had a chance to see the final version which was – as usual – beautifully designed and packed with photographs. Over my lunch break I sat down to have a proper look and to my astonishment I saw a picture of my papa on the front cover. Sitting down and facing away from the camera he

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was watching a weaving demonstration, apparently learning the skills required to produce my brother’s footstool. I immediately started to doubt myself.

Surely it was too much of a coincidence.

Only the side of his face could be glimpsed and he died when I was only two. Yet I still have vivid memories of him and there was something so familiar about this man – the leg of his glasses, his hands as they gripped the strands of material and, most of all, the way he sat.

I took a photo, emailed it to my parents and then called them. My Dad confirmed that this was, without a shadow of a doubt, his father. It took a while for it all to sink in. Thousands of photographs could have represented the history of the Royal Edinburgh Hospital. In fact, this one was chosen from amongst a pile of official press images. And right there, printed on top was my name.

I didn’t really know my papa, I was too young when he died, but dancing for him as he clapped in time and laughed is my earliest memory. He is spoken about often and is remembered as a generous, even-tempered, funny and intelligent man with a special flair for languages.

He was greatly loved and I’ve often been captivated by my Gran’s tales of their courtship during the War. Being brought together on the pages of the Morningside Mirror a full 32 years after his death has been a peculiar experience. It has meant a lot to my family (especially my Gran) and I think it says a great deal about the place this hospital holds in the local community – past, present and future.

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