A Visionary Hospital

During Phyllis Furumoto's professional Reiki practice seminar that I attended last weekend one of the participants shared her experience of a recent hospital stay in Oregon USA.   Elizabeth is a Reiki master and found that there was a culture of kindness in the hospital.  She observed that the staff  relationships were supportive and relaxed.  She also received this kindness in her treatment and care. 

She complimented them on this culture of kindness, saying they must have a good human resources department.  She was told that it was not down to the HR, but came right from the management at the top.

One evening she needed to have some intravenous treatment, but the nurses were having difficulty finding a vein.  Her nurse said she would have two more attempts, which were also unsuccessful.

"Time to call Amber" she said.  Amber, it turned out, is the Hospital Supervison and, Elizabeth discovered in conversation with her, a Reiki master.  She is also a midwife and the person who is called when there is a difficult birth.  She duly arrived and rather than begin to try finding a vein right away, she first gave 10 minutes of Reiki to the arm where she wished to insert the needle.  She then inserted it with no problem.

I have been thinking about how Reiki could help our beleaguered NHS in the UK - I can see many possibilities, but to hear this story about a hospital in the USA where Reiki and  culture of kindness are already happening and benefiting patients was very inspiring. 

I would love to see more NHS staff receiving Reiki, to help them deal with the stress levels many of them currently suffer.  It would also be wonderful if an understanding that people do better when there is a culture of kindness could reach management levels and could be acted on. 

It would also be wonderful to see Reiki integrated in the care setting, to support the allopathic treatment with the relaxing and calming effects of Reiki.  Doctors already know that patients who have a positive outlook and are relaxed about their treatment do better - and are often easier to treat!  If Reiki could be available for more patients alongside the intrusive treatments sometimes necessary, it could help those treatments to be more effective.

I also know of several Reiki students and practitioners who have had to have surgery who have needed little or no pain relief (they used Reiki instead) and who were up and about quickly and therefore able to vacate their hospital bed sooner.  One case I heard of recently (a man whose sister was treating him) needed his intensive care bed for only 1 night when it had been booked for him for 3 weeks!

However in order to be accepted in such settings practitioners need to be properly prepared, which means doing further training after 2nd degree.  Those who have been attending my Professional Practitioner Foundation Course in Ludlow are making those first steps and I hope that others will follow their lead in the future.