Environmental Enrichment on the Neurorehabilitation Ward: A Collaborative Translation Project

About the Project

Principal Investigators: 

• Dr Michael Norwood, Research Fellow, The Hopkins Centre, Griffith University
• Susan Jones, Nurse Unit Manager, Neuroscience Rehabilitation, Gold Coast University Hospital

People/organisations involved:

• Cherelle Cowl, Clinical Facilitator, Gold Coast Health
• Dr Kelly Clanchy, Senior Lecturer and Research Fellow, Griffith University

Aim and objectives

This project aims to co-create two cost-effective, sustainable environmental enrichment interventions for patients' rooms in neurorehabilitation — nature murals and digital photo frames. The project will evaluate whether the interventions, relative to standard rooms, reduce psychological distress, improve room experience, and impact psychosocial outcomes. 

The project will take an intervention mixed-methods design with co-design processes, embedded in the Gold Coast University Hospital Neurorehabilitation ward. The research team will identify mechanisms of impact (e.g., identity continuity, social connection, place attachment), implementation considerations, develop an evidence-based usage guide (digital frames) and implementation framework (murals) for scalable translation.

Expected Outcomes and Impact

This work is important as hospital stays can feel lonely and stressful, and that stress can hamper recovery. Our past research shows patients often find wards depressing and lonely. Bringing nature and social connection into ward design can improve patient wellbeing and recovery. This project aims to make rooms feel calmer, more personal, and more connected to what matters to each patient-family, friends, the outside, world, even pets. These inexpensive and safe room changes can deliver measurable gains in wellbeing and recovery. It is about making the environment work for recovery and wellbeing, rather than an environment undoing the work patients and therapists achieve in neurorehabilitation.

The team will test the effects of these changes and if the findings are positive, the ward can keep and scale these changes quickly-and other units can adopt this practical, approach with the clear safety, privacy, and cleaning protocols. This project is important, because when the environment supports recovery, patients do better. 

Project Status and Timeframe

The project has already been through co-design processes as per the BEEHive process for consumer-informed, sustainable solutions, informed by design thinking and the co-creation perspective. The Brain and Enriched Environment Lab (BEEHive) is an emerging collaboration between GCUH neurorehabilitation ward and Griffith University, that explores how we can use the environment to support rehabilitation from neurotrauma. The purpose of this study is to extend this collaboration and apply enriched-environment principles to reduce patients’ psychological distress and enhance rehabilitation, by strengthening their connection to self, others, and places.

Two prior BEEHive studies informed the solutions outlined in the current study:

(1) a virtual nature trial on the ward, which allowed immediate translation into the hospital and received international recognition

(2) research asking patients if, how, and why they personalise their rooms.

Project funded by the 2025 Collaborative Research Grant Scheme 2025 - Capacity and Collaboration Building Grant. Gold Coast Health.