HOUSTON — Methodist Hospital is testing a new concept in its emergency department to help staff decompress during stressful days.
It is called a "Rejuvenation Station."
It looks like a phone booth, but it’s a private, peaceful place to decompress.
Staff can choose from six soothing nature videos to watch in the soundproof pod.
“The music they put with it tends to bring your blood pressure down and your heart rate down. It allows you a moment to just breath and be yourself,” said Kimberley DuBose, Emergency Services Operations Manager at Methodist Hospital.
The booth was designed by Aesthetics, Inc. specifically for medical professionals.
Methodist Hospital is the first hospital in the country to test it. The Center for Performing Arts and Medicine is conducting the pilot.
“We did an analysis where we let people pre and post-rate how we felt. There was a unique, very distinct decrease in stress level,” DuBose said.
It’s available to all emergency room staff, from security and housekeeping to doctors and nurses.
“In the break room, you’re seeing other people and maybe listening to other stories or other cases. You’re hearing the PA system go off all the time. This is just a break away from everyone. It’s just you and your thoughts,” said Winslow Young, Methodist Hospital, a registered nurse at Methodist Hospital.
Methodist is trying the Rejuvenation Station in their hospital Baytown next to retest its impact on its emergency department staff.