InsideHistoryDigital

‘A new study has been published by Natural England which
reviews the benefits and outcomes of approaches to green
care for mental ill-health.’ www.gov.uk, 2016
‘Around 30 per cent of all people with a long-term physical
health condition also have a mental health problem, most
commonly depression/anxiety’
www.kingsfund.org, 2012
It seems we are still studying and connecting what
Hildegard knew and taught all those years ago.
Nearer to home, we find similar traits of Hildegard
in Euphemia de Walliers (1213-1257) who became
the Abbess of Wherwell in Dorset from 1226 until
her death. It is noted in some sources she was the
‘pioneer of modern hospital design’. Further
investigation shows that Abbess Euphemia did
indeed restructure Wherwell Abbey to cater for
more hygienic areas to care for the sick and needy –
it is worth noting this is 600 years before Florence
Nightingale bought the connection of sanitation
and health to the public eye.
In the fourteenth century, the chartulary of the
nuns of Wherwell Abbey was composed
(sometimes spelt cartulary, these are medieval
manuscripts containing transcripts of original
documents relating to all things connected to an
ecclesiastical building). This shows us how, again,
the connection with green care and health was
recognised:
‘She also, with maternal piety and careful
forethought, built, for the use of both sick and
sound, a new and large firmery away from the main
buildings, and in conjunction with it a dorter and
other necessary offices. Beneath the firmery she
constructed a watercourse, through which a
stream flowed with sufficient force to carry off all
refuse that might corrupt the air … Moreover she
built there a place set apart for the refreshment of
the soul, namely a chapel of the Blessed Virgin,
which was erected outside the cloister behind the
firmery. With the chapel she enclosed a large space,
which was adorned on the north side with pleasant
vines and trees. On the other side, by the river bank
… a space being left in the centre where the nuns
are able from time to time to enjoy the pure air. In
these and in other numberless ways, the blessed
mother Euphemia provided for the worship of God
and the welfare of the sisters’
Both of these powerful and respected women
highlighted nursing within other aspects of their
domain. They were highly intellectual but nursing,
closely linked to medical knowledge, was a
combination of studying nature, observing
remedies, studying the teachings of Hippocrates,
understanding models before their time – such as
the importance of hygiene and mental health –
whilst retaining their faith. In 2012, The King’s Fund
noted that around 30% of all people with a longterm
physical health condition also had underlying
mental health issues, namely depression/anxiety.
In 2016, Natural England published a study that
reviewed the benefits of green care for mental
health - note the term ‘green care’, still being used
over 800 years after Abbess Euphemia!
Louise Wyatt is the Author
of A HISTORY OF NURSING
published by Amberley
books.
RRP: £14.99