Reading Groups, Supporting Patients

Made me feel special, fantastic idea as it brings different people together and reading does make an impact in people’s lives.

New Mum with mood and anxiety disorders- Community Hospitals

It was great for the patients to have a new book and made them feel good to be included in the wider community as well.

Activity Coordinator -Watling Ward, Milton Keynes

OHFT supports the recovery of people with a range of mental health needs and learning difficulties. Evidence strongly suggests that reading will help with their recovery, for example by creating and engaging shared interest.

Reading has been found to be related to increased empathy, and research has found that reading can lead individuals to feel socially connected. Individuals with a diagnosis of depression experienced a reduction in depressive symptoms when taking part in a reading group” (Levine, S. L., For the love of reading, 2022).

As these people often find it very difficult to access reading materials, the library helps Occupational Therapists and Activity Coordinators set up patient reading groups, providing all the administrative work needed. To date 9 Reading Groups  have been set up across OHFT.

Our Outreach Librarians collaborate with Public Libraries to provide multiple copies of books selected from a wide range of those available:

We also supply reminiscence resources including:

  • Fortnightly circulation of the Weekly Sparkle
  • Collections for inpatient wards
  • Audio books from the Calibre library for patients reading groups in Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire.

For the past six years the patients and staff at many locations across the Trust have been receiving free books from the World Book Night sourced by the library. https://worldbooknight.org/impact/reading-for-recovery

Page last reviewed: 22 September, 2023