It is already happening in many healthcare settings: a musician plays at a patient’s bedside. An artist works alongside staff on a ward. In a community centre, a group of people create an artwork together. This is Arts in Health.
What Arts in Health looks like in practice
Arts in Health takes many forms in practice.
- Participatory projects focus on well-being. They help people relax, feel less alone and become active, curious, and reinspired. An artist might work with patients in a hospital, with healthcare professionals, or with people in a neighbourhood.
- Creative arts therapy works toward specific health outcomes. Creative arts therapists are trained and registered professionals. They use art forms as part of treatment, for example in mental health care or rehabilitation.
Together, these approaches show how broad the goals of Arts in Health are: from making social connections to meaning-making to therapy and supporting recovery.
This is already happening
In long-term care, more and more art forms are becoming part of residents’ daily lives. For example, in Amsterdam, the Ambulant Kunstteam of Cordaan brings Arts in Health professional into the community to make art with residents.
Arts in Health Groningen is working to give art a lasting place in healthcare through pilot projects, including a collaboration with the Universal Medical Centre Groningen (UMCG), and the Buur & Boek project by NOORDWOORD, which connects people through literature. At the Dijklander Hospital, music is also becoming part of everyday care. Organisations that are already doing extensive work in Arts in Health include LKCA and Movisie.
These initiatives differ in form, but share something essential: they create space for connection, imagination and recovery.
For professionals
Arts in Health often takes place in isolated projects. By showing what works and learning from it, a practice can grow and become sustainable. We already know that Arts in Health works. Now the question is: what can you do with it in your own practice?
Do you work in a healthcare organisation?
Look for where art can connect with your day-to-day practice. Start small, for example with a pilot on one ward. See what it does for patients, clients or staff, and build from there.
Are you an artist or maker?
Take time to understand the context you are working in. What is happening on a ward or in a neighbourhood? What do people need? Work together with healthcare professionals and make sure participants feel safe.
Are you developing a project?
You do not have to start from scratch. Build on what already exists and fit your work to the people and place you are working with. Choose a form that suits the setting, and pay attention to what it does for participants
Read more and explore
These resources help you better understand Arts in Health in practice:
- Books about Arts in Health
- Academical journals
- Rapport: next steps for the Arts in Health Network
- Culture for Health and Well-being Compendium
- Arts Council Ireland, Arts in Health Handbook
Want to actively contribute to Arts in Health? Soon you will be able to join the alliance. Sign up for our newsletter to stay informed.