Greening hospital terraces for improved wellbeing

Professor Xiaoqi Feng is from the School of Population Health within the UNSW Faculty of Medicine and Health. As the research lead on the project, utilising her vast knowledge and experience of nature-based solutions for health to ensure that the new terrace spaces are supportive for staff and patient wellbeing. She is leading the design and implementation of a staff survey to collate information on staff breaks, stress levels and general workplace satisfaction. The goal is to gather evidence on staff mental health, wellbeing, social connections and the time they spend in nature to inform the new design of the terrace and to help determine its impact once complete.

Senior Lecturer in Interior Architecture Eva Lloyd and Program Director of Landscape Architecture Dr Sara Padgett Kjaersgaard from the School of Built Environment are leading the design of the terrace. They will work closely with industry partners Yerrabingin to ensure that the new terrace space is appealing, sustainable and fit for purpose. They have developed a comprehensive design brief and are working with UNSW colleagues, hospital stakeholders, and industry landscape architect consultants  to produce a conceptual design proposal. Eva and Sara have also facilitated opportunities for four School of Built Environment students to participate in a Term 3 Work Integrated Learning course in partnership with Yerrabingin. The students will consolidate their industry learning through hands on experience in co-design workshops and concept design. 

The UNSW Faculty of Engineering is playing a key role in water management. Dr Kefeng Zhang is an expert in nature-based solutions and green technologies for urban water management. He is exploring how and where technologies such as green walls can be included in the revitalised terrace for water management, such as harvesting rainwater and achieving multiple sustainability benefits.

Led by Professor Greg Leslie, the UNSW Global Water Institute (UNSW-GWI) is providing project management, oversight and communication support. UNSW-GWI provided seed funding for the project and is helping to facilitate cross-disciplinary collaboration and promotion to maximise project impact.

Dr Wayne Hsueh (Director of Medical Services) and Adjunct Professor Robyn Gasparotto (Director of Nursing and Midwifery) are invested in staff wellbeing and are leading the project within The Royal Hospital for Women. On behalf of the hospital’s executive, they will collaborate with the UNSW team to determine project direction and facilitate staff and consumer participation. A participatory design methodology is used to ensure project outcomes align with the vision to facilitate human connections and enjoyment of green spaces.

Yerrabingin is an Indigenous owned and operated trans-disciplinary design practice. Their team of landscape architects will champion a socially inclusive and resilient design based on community needs that honour the wisdom and kinship of all cultures. The Yerrabingin team is responsible for the four Built Environment students and is an essential collaborator in the terrace design, especially in the integration of Indigenous Knowledge concepts and the production of conceptual design drawings.