Residents' use and perceptions of residential care facility gardens: A behaviour mapping and conversation study.
Eva Dahlkvist, Maria Engström, Annika Nilsson
PMID 31670913WHAT IT FOUND
Residents used care home gardens mainly to sit, socialise and relax, often placed there by staff.
They valued sensory stimulation and memories, but struggled with long corridors, heavy doors and uneven ground. Many wished for more active tasks like gardening, which were rarely offered.
Key findings
01Garden use was primarily passive, consisting of socialisation and relaxation, with residents often positioned by staff in specific areas.
02Residents reported that inability to go outdoors led to reduced well-being, disappointment, and in some cases feelings of distress.
03Key barriers to garden access included dependence on staff assistance, long corridors, difficult terrain (gravel, slopes), and lack of autonomous door opening.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for RNs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
Small sample size (11 residents) from only two facilities, limiting generalisability. Selection bias: facilities were chosen specifically for having gardens rated as 'high restorative value', so findings may not apply to facilities with poorer garden environments. Observations were limited to five occasions per facility during summer months, potentially missing seasonal variations in use. Reactivity: residents may have behaved differently knowing they were being observed.
Declared interests
No conflict of interest declared. Funded by the Faculty of Health and Occupational Studies, University of Gävle.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the residents' reported distress when unable to go outside as a clinical outcome measure of the garden itself. This is a qualitative description of perceptions in two specific facilities with high-rated gardens; it does not prove that garden access universally prevents clinical deterioration or that the design elements observed are the sole cause of the reported well-being.