Arnold, a program coordinator for medical policy at Tufts Health Plan, is able to step away from her computer and tend to her vegetables from an onsite garden provided by her employer. “It’s very therapeutic,” she said. “It gives me my five minutes or ten minutes away from my desk. When I get back, I’m focused.”
Tufts is among a number of employers that offer employees quiet spaces where they can break away from their desks for a few minutes. And the brief escapes are catching on with workers. “The more people hear about it, the more they’re willing to try it,” said Lydia Greene, Tuft’s chief human resources officer. “Pretty soon we will need a bigger room.”