Louisville healthcare workers growing a place for peace through gardening

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Several healthcare workers in Louisville aren't just tending to patients, they're also tending to plants in a garden.

The garden is made up of several raised beds at a site at Bowman Field. It's cared for by Norton Healthcare's Transport team. The garden has a variety of flowers and vegetables including eggplants, sunflowers, radishes and more.

"It started very little and now it's grown into this," said Lauren Podvin with Norton Children's Transport team.

Norton Healthcare Transport Team grows garden (WDRB image from July 13, 2024).

Podvin is a registered nurse. She's been part of Norton Children's transport team since 2015. It was her idea to create the garden after the team moved to its Bowman Field location in 2021.

"Our job can absolutely be very stressful. A lot of sick kids, babies, even teenagers," she said.

The transport team is responsible for getting patients to the care they need at the hospital, either through ambulance rides or helicopter flights.

NORTON TRANSPORT GARDEN — Norton Children's air transport in Louisville, Ky. (WDRB image from July 13, 2024)

"We're a very busy transport team and we may only have 30 minutes between each transport," said Pennie Berry, director of transport and EMS services for Norton Healthcare.

Berry said the team can fly as far north as Michigan or as far south as Alabama, but primarily serves patients in Kentucky and southern Indiana.

"The transport team has been around for 45 plus years, they transport over 3,000 patients annually," she said. "Any time a call comes in, they go regardless of the weather. They always have a positive attitude. I could not say enough about them."

Berry admits when Podvin first approached her with the idea to plant a garden she wasn't sure what that vision would become, but it's grown -- literally -- and has become a place for peace for workers on both the adult and pediatric transport teams.

"It gets you moving, it's good for your physical health, it's good for your mental health," Podvin said. "The garden provides a nice area to decompress after an especially difficult trip."

The CDC said health worker jobs involve demand and sometimes dangerous duties. The COVID-19 pandemic presented even more stressors.

"Research shows that you know, there is threptic qualities in touching ground and picking vegetables and pulling weeds and it's just a way to decompress," Berry added.

Podvin said the garden is a calming place. Aside from tending to it, many employees enjoy the benefits of taking home the fruits and veggies to eat. In the fall, the garden will produce pumpkins.