Coming to Our Senses

Coming To Our Senses is an innovative new 'mindfulness through theatre' course, developed and delivered by Iwan Brioc of Theatr Cynefin and Psychologist, Sarah Gregg and funded by the Arts Council of Wales. The aim was to explore the effectiveness of an applied theatre approach to mindfulness in enhancing mental health and resilience, specifically targeting the challenges faced by workers in high-stress medical environments. It was piloted with two groups of participants from a cross section of the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board workforce during summer and autumn 2023.  The first iteration of the course was at The Grange University Hospital and targeted general staff and the second was at Mamhilad Park Estate hosted by the Complex Care and Community Nursing team.

The Challenge:

Healthcare professionals often face intense stress and burnout, creating a crucial need for effective mental health support strategies.  In a recent wellbeing survey a third of ABUHB staff said they can't see how they can carry on. "We are turning up the dial on what we tolerate, staff are being traumatised by this, and we are sleepwalking into a potential disaster" said Daniel Madge, Senior OD Manager. Our goal was to create a safe space with these professionals to explore, express and rehearse meeting their needs . Not only to provide immediate stress relief but also to empower participants with meta-cognitive tools and techniques that could be applied in both their personal and professional lives, thereby addressing a gap in the wellness resources available.

The Approach:

Coming to Our Senses is delivered through 120-minute weekly sessions over 8 consecutive weeks.  It is based on a three-day intensive introduction to Context Oriented Arts called 'The Art of Looking at Ourselves' that Theatr Cynefin has been delivering internationally for over 10 years. 

Each session consists of one or two applied theatre activities, called 'dynamic metaphors' bookended by the introduction of a mindfulness practice and includes time to inquire and reflect in a circle.  It is the way that the dynamic metaphors serve to give an experiential and embodied understanding of the core mindfulness themes that make this curriculum unique. 

 Participants are also introduced to a journaling methodology developed by psychologist, Sarah Gregg, which help increase availability to flow states during the day - concomitant with the raw and natural mindfulness remembered from childhood.

Iteration 1: Started with 14 participants from a cross-section of self-selecting staff from ABUHB at The Grange University Hospital. Iteration 2: Started with 9 staff from the Complex Care and Community Nursing team as Mamhilad Park Estate.

The delivery team met regularly to monitor progress and on the second iteration mindfulness teacher, Kamalagita Hughes joined as a critical friend.

The Impact:

Independent researcher Ruth Stevenson (www.ruthlessresearch.co.uk) was commissioned to evaluate the Coming to Our Senses project. The research methodology comprised: pre- and post- course surveys completed by 14 participants, plus depth interviews with 4x participants and 5x project partners.

At the close of the Coming to Our Senses course, most of the participants were using the techniques that they had learned during the course:

▪ 86% had applied techniques that they learned, outside the course;

▪ 92% agreed that they regularly use mindfulness to improve their wellbeing (rising significantly from 31% in advance of the course);

▪ 54% agreed that they regularly use flow to improve their wellbeing (rising significantly from 8% in advance of the course).

Additionally, most of the participants had experienced positive impacts as a result of the course:

▪ 79% agreed that their wellbeing has improved because of this course;

▪ 71% agreed that they have treated themselves more kindly because of this course;

▪ 57% agreed that their personal life has improved because of this course;

▪ 57% agreed that their working life has improved because of this course;

▪ 57% said that yes, participating in the course lead to changes in their future plans or ambitions;

▪ 36% had experienced a moment of deep insight during the course.

Lessons Learned:

The course worked extremely well for engaged participants but faced significant recruitment and retention challenges. Filling groups was initially difficult, as NHS staff found it hard to commit and attend consistently, hindered by work duties and personal/systemic barriers. Typically, 14 signed up per cohort, but only about 5 attended regularly, with others sporadically.  Despite there being a lengthy waiting list of staff still wishing to do the course, future versions of the course must address these issues of retention in delivery planning.

The Legacy:

"Coming To Our Senses" offers a novel approach to staff wellbeing in healthcare, with potential for broad application.

Summarising, one Manager said - "It probably stopped some people going off sick so there's a staff retention and a sickness benefit. If you're feeling positive, you're not finding excuses to hide and you've got a mechanism for not feeling overwhelmed, or you are able to take yourself away and do something with it rather being negative. That rubs off on everybody around you.”

Next step is to fund a broadening of participation.