Arts in Healthcare
settings swims in a fantastic sea of opportunity. The
Department of Health is engaged in its largest-ever
building and refurbishment initiative for both primary
care, through its LIFT scheme, and acute care, through
the PFI programme. The importance of incorporating the
arts at the design stage into the fabric of the building
and the ethos of the organisation has consistently been
emphasised. The message is getting across - as evidenced
by several trusts allocating 1% of the capital budget
to the arts, and the editor of the BMJ calling for 0.5%
of the Department of Health budget to be spent on the
arts. More than pictures on walls, the Arts in Healthcare
settings are creating healing environments through the
use of music, dance, drama, poetry - indeed NNAH members
embody over 30 different art forms.
Beyond the importance of improving healthcare facilities,
the arts have also been used as part of the consultation
process for PFI bidders. Healthcare arts programmes
play an essential role in building trust between healthcare
buildings and the communities they serve. The arts communicate.
In the Community Arts in Health sector there is similar
cause for enthusiasm. The value of arts in health issues
is on Local Government agendas - the requirement to
write cultural strategies helped raise awareness of
the powerful role community Arts in Health projects
can play in achieving social, as well as health targets.
Local Authorities and Health Authorities are recognising
that community Arts in Health projects impact directly
and indirectly on the lives of local citizens and their
communities in many ways including health promotion,
health education and social inclusion issues. Local
Government has come to realise that community arts in
health projects do not just make people feel better
about themselves. They tackle serious issues such as
prostitution, heart disease, breast cancer, teen pregnancy,
sexual health and relations between differing ethnic
communities. The arts can communicate better the messages
Local Authorities and Health Authorities have been trying
to share through leaflets and brochures, and seemingly
have a longer-lasting impact.
The Medical Humanities are an interdisciplinary approach
to education, healthcare and research. This work broadens
the education of health professionals and their practise
of medicine. Through the Medical Humanities, medical
practitioners and patients alike expand their understanding
of health and illness.
The Centre for Arts and Humanities in Health and Medicine
at Durham University, The Medical Humanities Unit at
University College London and the launch of the Association
of Medical Humanities all work to support this growing
area of work.
The National Network for the Arts in Health tentatively
includes Arts Therapies in its overview of the field,
as Art Therapy is a field itself, requiring a post-graduate
degree for practice. The debate surrounding the therapeutic
benefits of the arts and the arts as therapy has been
voiced for years; however, at present the debate is
turning to dialogue. The focus is now on how Arts in
Health and Arts Therapies complement one another rather
than differ. As a result, many Arts Therapists have
chosen to join the National Network for the Arts in
Health.
The Arts in Health field is broad and deep and the work
continues to grow, change, mature and develop. As it
does, the National Network for the Arts in Health will
continue to evolve to serve its needs and inform its
practice.
Contact: Lara Dose, NNAH, Tel: 0207 2611317,
e-mail: info@nnah.org.uk
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