Other Titles
Taking Care of Yourself so That You Can Take Care of Others: The Secret Garden: A Staff Only Wellness Center [Title Slide]
Abstract
Healthcare workers provide for others in thoughtful, therapeutic ways, which becomes problematic if their mental and emotional resources are depleted. When healthcare workers experience a self-care deficit, their well-being and patient care are compromised. Recent factors contributing to staff stress include the impact of COVID-19 and the Pediatric Behavioral Health Crisis. An identified need to improve staff well-being was visible. The purpose of this quality improvement project, using the Plan-Do-Study-Act methodology, was to develop and implement the Secret Garden to improve the health of the work environment. The Secret Garden is a staff-only respite space, operationalized and managed to support the well-being of all interdisciplinary staff.
The Secret Garden is a quiet, low-stimulating, and nurturing environment for staff to use to reset and recharge in ways that are meaningful to them. The authors collaborated with the audio-visual department, marketing, culture works, and senior leadership to obtain a space where all staff may enter 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to engage in self-directed and/or practitioner-led activities. Offerings include self-directed yoga and stretch areas, loungers, massage chairs, and journal materials. Meditation music and nature visuals stream on large screens to immerse oneself in a relaxed environment. Additionally, staff can access the available literature on coping skills, breath work, building resilience, recognizing bias, and navigating grief. The practitioner-led sessions offered to specific units include 30 minutes of either a sound bath, Reiki circle, guided meditation with breath work, journaling, and chair yoga. These are additionally accessible via live Zoom to staff who wish to participate remotely.
Ongoing quantitative and qualitative data collection has demonstrated increased utilization and decreased staff perceived stress levels pre- and post-visit to the Secret Garden. Daily staff badge counts are collected monthly to understand and describe the utilization of this space. Since opening in November 2022, staff utilization has increased by 337% (n= 454 badges in November 2022 v. 1,531 in June 2023).
Staff perceived stress is measured using voluntary pre-post surveys. The surveys measure perceived stress pre- and post-use of the Secret Garden using a 5-point Likert scale and a free text comment section to capture staff experience. To date, 217 surveys have been collected, all describing a decrease in stress post-visit. All participants reported decreased stress post-experience after practitioner-led offerings in the space (N= 56 surveys). The thematic analysis found that participants desired consistent practitioner-led offerings and described gratitude for and voiced the importance and necessity of the space to enhance their well-being in order to return to work.
Findings have shown that fostering positive mental health habits by taking time to reset and recharge has reduced staff stress. Clear implications are for leaders and policymakers to take a stance on standardizing and prioritizing staff well-being by implementing such a program, aligning with the US Surgeon General's 2022 nationwide statement on improving employee wellness.
Notes
Presenter notes available in attached slide deck.
Additional references included in attached slide deck.
Published article by same authors:
Cashin, E. Q., Schlebusch, J., & Reed, M. P. (2024). The Secret Garden: A staff-only wellness and respite space: This dedicated area offers rest and aids stress reduction. American Nurse Journal, 19(10), 52–56. https://doi-org.proxy.ulib.uits.iu.edu/10.51256/anj102452
References:
Byon, H. D., Sagherian, K., Kim, Y., Lipscomb, J., Crandall, M., & Steege, L. (2022). Nurses’ experience with type II workplace violence and underreporting during the COVID-19 pandemic. Workplace Health & Safety, 70(9), 412–420. https://doi.org/10.1177/21650799211031233
Chesak, S. S., Cutshall, S. M., Bowe, C. L., Montanari, K. M., & Bhagra, A. (2019). Stress management interventions for nurses: Critical literature review. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 37(3), 288–295. https://doi.org/10.1177/0898010119842693Clay, R. (2020). Are you experiencing compassion fatigue. American Psychological Association, American Psychological Association, https://www.apa.org/topics/covid-19/compassion-fatigue
England, N. H. S. (2021). Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) cycles and the model for improvement. https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/qsir-pdsa-cycles-model-for-improvement.pdf
Office of the Surgeon General. (2022). The US Surgeon General's framework for workplace mental health & well-being. https://www.hhs.gov/surgeongeneral/priorities/workplace-well-being/index.html
Søvold, L. E., Naslund, J. A., Kousoulis, A. A., Saxena, S., Qoronfleh, M. W., Grobler, C., & Münter, L. (2021). Prioritizing the mental health and well-being of healthcare workers: An urgent global public health priority. Frontiers in Public Health, 9, 679397. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.679397
Tamminga, S. J., Emal, L. M., Boschman, J. S., Levasseur, A., Thota, A., Ruotsalainen, J. H., Schelvis, R. M., Nieuwenhuijsen, K., & van der Molen, H. F. (2023). Individual-level interventions for reducing occupational stress in healthcare workers. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 5(5), CD002892. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD002892.pub6
Sigma Membership
Non-member
Type
Presentation
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Quality Improvement
Research Approach
Other
Keywords:
Well-being, Multidisciplinary Care Team, Pediatric Hospitals, Stress Management, FAcility Design and Construction, Psychological Well-being, Hospitals, Work Environment
Recommended Citation
Quinlan, Erin and Schlebusch, Jennifer, "The Secret Garden: Staff Caring for Staff" (2026). Creating Healthy Work Environments (CHWE). 81.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/chwe/2024/presentations_2024/81
Conference Name
Creating Healthy Work Environments
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Washington, DC, USA
Conference Year
2024
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2026-02-23
The Secret Garden: Staff Caring for Staff
Washington, DC, USA
Healthcare workers provide for others in thoughtful, therapeutic ways, which becomes problematic if their mental and emotional resources are depleted. When healthcare workers experience a self-care deficit, their well-being and patient care are compromised. Recent factors contributing to staff stress include the impact of COVID-19 and the Pediatric Behavioral Health Crisis. An identified need to improve staff well-being was visible. The purpose of this quality improvement project, using the Plan-Do-Study-Act methodology, was to develop and implement the Secret Garden to improve the health of the work environment. The Secret Garden is a staff-only respite space, operationalized and managed to support the well-being of all interdisciplinary staff.
The Secret Garden is a quiet, low-stimulating, and nurturing environment for staff to use to reset and recharge in ways that are meaningful to them. The authors collaborated with the audio-visual department, marketing, culture works, and senior leadership to obtain a space where all staff may enter 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to engage in self-directed and/or practitioner-led activities. Offerings include self-directed yoga and stretch areas, loungers, massage chairs, and journal materials. Meditation music and nature visuals stream on large screens to immerse oneself in a relaxed environment. Additionally, staff can access the available literature on coping skills, breath work, building resilience, recognizing bias, and navigating grief. The practitioner-led sessions offered to specific units include 30 minutes of either a sound bath, Reiki circle, guided meditation with breath work, journaling, and chair yoga. These are additionally accessible via live Zoom to staff who wish to participate remotely.
Ongoing quantitative and qualitative data collection has demonstrated increased utilization and decreased staff perceived stress levels pre- and post-visit to the Secret Garden. Daily staff badge counts are collected monthly to understand and describe the utilization of this space. Since opening in November 2022, staff utilization has increased by 337% (n= 454 badges in November 2022 v. 1,531 in June 2023).
Staff perceived stress is measured using voluntary pre-post surveys. The surveys measure perceived stress pre- and post-use of the Secret Garden using a 5-point Likert scale and a free text comment section to capture staff experience. To date, 217 surveys have been collected, all describing a decrease in stress post-visit. All participants reported decreased stress post-experience after practitioner-led offerings in the space (N= 56 surveys). The thematic analysis found that participants desired consistent practitioner-led offerings and described gratitude for and voiced the importance and necessity of the space to enhance their well-being in order to return to work.
Findings have shown that fostering positive mental health habits by taking time to reset and recharge has reduced staff stress. Clear implications are for leaders and policymakers to take a stance on standardizing and prioritizing staff well-being by implementing such a program, aligning with the US Surgeon General's 2022 nationwide statement on improving employee wellness.
Description
Healthcare workers are consistently caring for others, but their own mental health frequently becomes neglected. In this session, you will learn how two staff from a freestanding pediatric hospital developed and implemented a staff-only wellness center. Explore their process that resulted in proving utilization and decreasing staff stress.