Across the UK, a quiet yet powerful shift is taking place. Hospitals and hospices are opening their doors to Reiki — a gentle, hands-on energy therapy — as part of a growing movement toward more holistic, compassionate care.
the rise of reiki in healthcare
At St George’s Hospital in London, the Connecting Reiki with Medicine project is training practitioners to work alongside doctors and nurses in intensive and oncology units. Early reports show reduced pain, better sleep, and lower anxiety for patients receiving sessions.
In hospices like Forest Holme in Dorset, patients describe Reiki as bringing “a wonderful sense of calm.” A hospice doctor notes that during sessions, breathing often softens, anxiety eases, and pain feels more manageable.
Even in cancer centres such as Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, Reiki is offered to help patients relax during treatment. Many say it provides rest, relief, and a renewed sense of strength in difficult times.
improving quality of life
Reiki isn’t about replacing medicine; it’s about complementing it. In busy wards, cancer units, and palliative-care rooms, Reiki is helping patients find peace, easing pain, and offering moments of calm where they are needed most.
Research from the University of Birmingham and the UK Reiki Federation shows that Reiki may help reduce pain, anxiety, and fatigue while promoting relaxation and emotional wellbeing. In hospice care, these small shifts make a profound difference — improving not only comfort, but also dignity, hope, and connection.
Reiki invites stillness. In the midst of machines, medication, and medical schedules, it creates a pause — a reminder that healing is not only physical but emotional and spiritual, too.
a new chapter in compassionate care
The NHS’s growing embrace of therapies like Reiki reflects a wider truth: people heal best when cared for as whole human beings. While more research is still needed, the evidence — and the heartfelt stories — suggest that Reiki offers something medicine alone cannot: a moment of peace, a sense of balance, and the simple human comfort of touch and presence.
As one nurse put it, “Reiki doesn’t just help our patients — it helps us remember why we care.”
