The Dorchester County Health Department’s School-Based Wellness Center program now offers an exciting new addition to its health and wellness services at Cambridge-South Dorchester High School.
With funding from the Maryland Department of Health, the center designed and opened a new therapeutic garden space behind its wellness center on the campus grounds.
“Our new therapeutic healing garden at CSD High School is more than just a collection of plants; it’s a welcoming space for students, built on the belief that everyone deserves access to nature’s healing power,” Christa Chesley, LCSW-C, said. Chesley is the mental health supervisor for the School-Based Wellness Centers.
“We understand the pressures that many students and families face, and this garden offers an accessible and beautiful space for young people to feel safe, to heal, and to envision a brighter future,” Chesley said.
The garden prioritizes native plants and sensory elements, drawing on sights, smells, textures, and even sound.
The space features gently graded, accessible entrances, wide paved paths, and raised planting beds to accommodate individuals with a range of interests and abilities.
A therapeutic garden helps people interact with nature’s healing elements. Interactions can be passive or active, depending on the users’ needs. Therapeutic horticulture is used in various settings, including hospitals, rehabilitation centers, schools, and community gardens.It uses gardening, nature-based activities, and interactions with the natural environment to promote physical, psychological, and social well-being.
While the Wellness Center’s healing garden will beautify the school campus, the primary intention is to offer a connection with the natural environment.
This helps students reduce stress, strengthen learned coping strategies, and promotes social connections and improved mental health.
News reports show increasing mental health needs among young people. The wellness center is thrilled to offer this enhancement to their treatment.
The School-Based Wellness Center program offers medical and mental health services on-site at Dorchester County middle and high schools.
Nurse practitioners and mental health therapists staff the center. Our services are available to all enrolled students and school staff and include easy access for sick visits, sports physicals, seasonal flu vaccinations, and more.
Medical services are also available to students from select feeder elementary schools. Parents can ask their school nurse for more details.
To learn more about the healing garden, contact Christa Chesley, LCSW-C, mental health supervisor, at 410-228-3825.
For general information about the Dorchester County School-Based Wellness Center program, contact Mindy Black-Kelly, program administrator, at 410-901-8177.
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