Hospital patients met with The Princess Royal during a visit to promote the positive link between occupational therapy and mental health.
Cygnet Hospital Beckton, Tunnan Leys, welcomed Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal for a special visit to highlight the important role occupational therapy plays in mental health.
Princess Anne visited the hospital – where women with complex mental health are offered specialist services – on Thursday in her role as Patron of the College of Occupational Therapists.
While there, she met patients and members of Cygnet’s occupational therapy team before stopping by the hospital’s Recovery Academy.
Her Royal Highness also viewed displays on patient empowerment and heard about beneficial patient activities such as smoking cessation, sports instruction and gardening.
In her address, Princess Anne told visitors that the role occupational therapists play in preparing people for recovery and returning to their communities was a vital one.
She said: “It is always a pleasure to see where occupational therapists are working in preparing people for their lives outside of hospital, improving their confidence and maintaining that confidence. That support can influence where they go in their lives.
“Occupational therapists should feel a real sense of achievement for their role in supporting individuals in finding and engaging with those activities and pursuits – many of which they may not have experienced or taken part in before their time at the hospital – which can influence what they do next and in their lives outside of the hospital environment.”
Cygnet Health Care Chief Operating Officer Nicky McLeod said she was “delighted and honoured” to welcome HRH The Princess Royal to Cygnet Hospital Beckton.
She said: “As an organisation we invest in and greatly value the immensely positive contribution occupational therapy makes to those who use our services.”
The Beckton hospital is one of more than 20 facilities run by Cygnet Health Care nationwide to support people with specialist mental health services.
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