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Healthcare staff will start encouraging patients to enjoy nature and the outdoors in a new scheme in the West Midlands.<\/p>\n
More than 40 health organisations have received training and free booklets to share with people they support in the hope of boosting their well-being as part of the scheme from the RSPB and the West Midlands Combined Authority.<\/p>\n
The Nature Prescription project encourages people to connect with the outdoors at a time to suit them, an RSPB spokesperson said.<\/p>\n
The charity said it wanted more medical staff to take part, particularly those based in Sandwell, Walsall and Birmingham.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Alexis Johnson, RSPB Nature and Well-being Officer, said she had personally benefited from connecting to nature in challenging moments of her life and was keen to share the benefits with others.<\/p>\n
“Nature is all around us and we’re a part of it, listening to birdsong or feeling a cooling breeze on a warm day can truly lift our spirits,” she added.<\/p>\n
The launch in the West Midlands follows successful projects in other parts of the UK since 2022, the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n
Anne Glover, from the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Trust, said: “We completed our training session in April and it was lovely to see how passionate and inspired everyone is. <\/p>\n
“We have developed a fun, interactive session based on the RSPB resources to create an exciting session. <\/p>\n
“We’ve already fully booked out the places for this August session so it’s clear to see there’s appetite.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n