Green Care: A Conceptual Framework - Frisk i naturen

as interventions/therapies. Care farming, because of its broad range of
approaches and activities, extends in the model from health promotion,
through therapy, to work rehabilitation/ sheltered green employment (the
bottom layer). In reality, the boundaries between layers, activities and the
sub-categories are not always distinct. However, by classifying them in this
way it is hoped that the reader will get a better idea of the complexity of
green care and how different approaches and interventions are connected.
3.3 The essentials of green care: ‘common’ and
‘natural’ dimensions
Green care interventions, for example, care farming and therapeutic
horticulture enable clients to participate in activities that are meaningful
and productive and that have many attributes in common with paid
employment. These include physical activity, daily routine, social
interaction and opportunities and so on. It could be argued that many forms
of sheltered employment in factories or workshops would provide the same
benefits as green care, albeit in a different environment. Sempik et al (2005)
have shown that social and therapeutic horticulture (STH) enables clients
to be productive in an environment that is not pressured; to develop a sense
of identity and competence around ‘being a gardener’ or a ‘worker’ rather
than a patient; it enables them to engage in social interaction; to develop
daily routine and structure; to participate in the running of their project;
sometimes to be paid for their work or on occasions to be helped to find
paid employment. All of these aspects can be supplied by approaches and
interventions that do not use a natural setting. Indeed, Sempik et al (2005)
reported that the managers of one STH project were ambivalent to the
natural dimension and suggested that their clients would have been just as
happy and motivated manufacturing “double glazing units”. The clients
were very firmly of the opposite opinion. They clearly valued nature and
considered it to be a powerful influence on their health and well-being.
Such a view of nature is present throughout the literature. Indeed, there is
evidence of the psychological benefit of the natural environment in aiding
recovery from stress (see Section 6.4) or restoring the ability to focus
attention (see Section 6.3).
Activities and processes within green care can be categorised as those that
are ‘common’, i.e. that occur in common with other circumstances and
approaches and do not necessarily involve or require a natural environment.
30 Green Care: A Conceptual Framework