The Writers’ Nook
The Writers’ Nook is a corner of a café at the University Hospital of North Tees. It is part of a project to look at how Creative Writing might act as a psycho-social support for frontline healthcare writers.
The project was led by Professor Siobhan Campbell at The Open University and is a collaboration with the Northern Cancer Care Alliance and University Hospital Tees. The project involved workshops run by Siobhan, with retired palliative nurse consultant and poet, Mel McEvoy, and academic Sally Blackburn-Daniels (OU). The nook (pictured below) showcases stories, prose and poems written by members of staff following the workshops.
The Writers’ Nook at the University Hospital of North Tees
Dr Jean MacLeod, Chair of the arts council at University Hospitals Tees, says: ‘The arts council want the nook to be a place that encourages reflection and reading or to help encourage others to pick up a pen or pencil and putting their own thoughts to paper. With the support of the library team, we have also made space for a bookcase in this area, allowing staff to pick up or swap and share a book and to serve as a space to highlight key literacy information. It also helps to encourage staff taking that all-important wellbeing break, which is already receiving some positive feedback from our staff. It is hoped in the future we may be able to carve out other little nooks in our other hospitals to have this wellbeing space and to celebrate creativity in its written form.’
Around 25 people attended the workshops and hundreds have since visited the nook. The exhibit is ongoing – and is an example of how writing offers a form of medicine at any stage of life.
Celebrating the opening of The Writers’ Nook
