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What Arts in Health education involves

Arts in health education is growing in the Netherlands. So is the demand.

• The University of Groningen runs an annual Arts in Health Summer School, combining practical and theoretical insights into participatory practice with an introduction to creative arts therapies.
• The Prins Claus Conservatoire offers opportunities to study and research the use of music in healthcare.
• The Art of Caring Summer School brings together students from healthcare and the arts to explore where the two fields meet.
• Creative Arts Therapy Netherlands offers certified training for those who want to specialise in therapeutic applications.

Online courses are also available from University College London, King's College London, and the Royal Society for Public Health.

What is already happening

The Creating Cultures of Care consortium is mapping the educational landscape in the Netherlands. Their work will describe what programs already exist, and what is needed. 

Universities and universities of applied sciences are developing more modules and minors in arts in health. Arts in health projects and courses can be found in the visual arts, care ethics, nursing, spiritual care, and the medical humanities.

For educators and students

Arts in health needs people who are at home in two worlds. You do not need to know everything, but you are curious about all of it.

Thinking about studying arts in health?
Look for programmes that connect to care, art, or welfare. Nursing, arts education, or social studies are good starting points. From there, you can go deeper into areas of arts in health that are of special interest to you.

Do you teach or develop programmes?
Arts in health is interdisciplinary. It needs collaboration between arts and healthcare educators. Help students learn to work safely with vulnerable people, and learn about self-care from the start.

Read more and get involved

• Books about Arts in Health
• Website Vaktherapie Nederland
• Culture for Health and Well-being Compendium
• Arts Council Ireland, Arts in Health Handbook

Want to contribute to the development of arts in health education in the Netherlands? The alliance is coming. Sign up for our newsletter to stay informed.

What arts in health research looks like

Arts in health is studied from several scientific traditions.

Life sciences research asks what art does for health. For instance, what live music means to a patient recovering from surgery, or what creative movement can offer someone living with dementia.

Social sciences research asks what arts in health means in people's lives. How does a group museum visit shape the way someone with chronic pain experiences that pain? What does joining a choir do for people living with dementia, and for those who care for them? 

Humanities research focuses on reflection and meaning, for example: the role of the artist in care; questions of ethics and aesthetics; and what it means to make art when you are ill or caring for someone you love.

What is already happening

In 2024, the long-term care provider organisation Cordaan, with the Museum van de Geest,   funded a chair of arts in health at the Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management. Later that year, another appointment was established at the Erasmus School of History, Culture and Communication, focused on Arts & Wellbeing.

Researchers across the Netherlands are working on a national research agenda for the coming decade. The questions driving it: how can programmes survive beyond an initial project phase? How do you make effects visible? And what does arts in health mean for healthcare staff and medical education?

Research in this field is supported by ZonMw, the SPRONG Creating Cultures of Care project, the Fonds voor Cultuurparticipatie, Lang Leve Kunst, and Welzijn op Recept.

For researchers
Are you a researcher? Connect with what is already happening in your field, and outside your discipline. Can your expertise catake an existing question further, or open up a new one? Collaborating across disciplines, and connecting research and practice, can make for a richer body of research.

Read more and get involved
A great deal is published internationally on arts in gealth. These resources can help you explore the field further:

• Books about arts in health
• Academical journals 
• Pilot: meet artists in the hospital
• Rapport: next steps in arts in health-network
• Interview: Evidence for the arts in UK public health
• News clip: role of the arts in health

Want to contribute to the development of arts in health research in the Netherlands? The alliance is coming. Sign up for our newsletter to stay informed.

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.

Buur & Boek was a pilot project by NOORDWOORD and Arts in Health Groningen, focused on the joy of shared reading and creative writing. From October 2025 to March 2026, residents from different neighbourhoods and villages across the province of Groningen came together to read, write, talk, and reflect on short stories, poetry and novels. These gatherings took place in five local communities in familiar and accessible places within each neighbourhood. The groups met bi-weekly in the Korrewegwijk, Beijum, Finsterwolde, Noordlaren and Feerwerd. The groups were guided by four workshop leaders who each bring their own unique background and approach to creative reading and writing.

The goal of the project is to use reading and writing to inspire connection and care in the communities, and encouraging new groups to form. No previous literary experience or nor is preparation necessary to join the groups. Participants from a wide variety of backgrounds join in experiencing ‘shared reading’, creative writing, deep listening, and reflective conversations. 

Arts in Health Groningen lead a bi-weekly learning community to support the four group leaders and project coordinator. The learning community involved peer discussion, reflection, planning, and coaching as needed. The group also discussed scientific literature on the health benefits of reading and writing, to inform practice. Self-care was also addressed, and the ethics of community-based work. 

The Buur & Boek sessions created space for community members to meet one another in new ways. Reading and writing become starting points for reflective conversations, deep attention, and sharing inspiration. Along the way, social connections are built or strengthened. “We meet with neighbours to talk about life through literature and poetry,” one of the workshop leaders explains. “We read and talk, and if people wish, also create. Everything is allowed, nothing is required.” Another workshop leader adds, “It is not about having the same opinion, but about daring to speak and to listen.”

The workshop leaders – Charlotte Beerda, Gemma Jissink, Lieke van den Krommenacker and Willemijn van de Walle – each brought their own experience in literature, performance and community-based work. Curious to learn more about who they are and how they work?

At the end of the pilot, the groups came together for four mini-festivals in their own communities, organized by Boer & Boek’ project coordinator.  At the mini-festivals, participants and leaders shared their experience and discoveries. The mini-festivals were all quite different, with activities ranging from interviews with Dutch authors to poetry readings in open fields, poetry walks, and writing haiku in a cowshed. These moments created space to reflect on the conversations, experiences and connections that had developed over the months.

For Arts in Health Groningen, Buur & Boek is part of a broader programme in which the arts are used to support reflection, dialogue and social connection, and in doing so contribute to well-being. By creating spaces where people can meet around shared curiosity and creativity, Buur & Boek contributes to imagination and a sense of community in everyday life.

Participation in Buur & Boek was free of charge. The project ran from October 2025 to March 2026 and was organised by NOORDWOORD in collaboration with Arts in Health Groningen and local partners in the participating communities. The pilot was made possible with support from the Dutch Foundation for Literature (Nederlands Letterenfonds), VSBfonds, Fonds voor Cultuurparticipatie, the Municipality of Groningen, the Province of Groningen, the Aletta Jacobs School of Public Health, the University of Groningen, and the National Programme Groningen.

Want to learn more about research literature and well-being?

The effects of reading on wellbeing have been investigated for decades by researchers from the humanities, social sciences and health sciences. Findings suggest that reading is not only a source of knowledge and entertainment, but also contributes to psychological and social health. Reading fiction is often described as a form of mental simulation that exercises social cognition, empathy, and Theory of Mind [1, 2]. These contribute to people's social and psychological wellbeing. For such effects on wellbeing, it is important that people engage with, and reflect on, what they read [3]. Inspired by such research, shared reading programmes have been used to reduce loneliness, start conversations and strengthen the sense of belonging, especially among people from different backgrounds or generations [e.g. 4; 5].

Expressive and reflective writing—such as diaries, short stories, or letters—can improve both mental and physical health as research in psychology and the health sciences highlights [6, 7, 8]. There is even evidence that points to writing reducing depressive [9] and PTS(D) symptoms [10] and that it allows people to better deal with grief [11]. For writing workshops to support wellbeing, it is important to create a trusting environment[12].

References:

1. Dodell-Feder, D., & Tamir, D. I. (2018). Fiction reading has a small positive impact on social cognition: A meta-analysis. Journal of experimental psychology. General, 147(11), 1713–1727. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0000395 
2. Oatley K. (2016). Fiction: Simulation of Social Worlds. Trends in cognitive sciences, 20(8), 618–628. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2016.06.002 
3. Carney, J., & Robertson, C. (2022). Five studies evaluating the impact on mental health and mood of recalling, reading, and discussing fiction. PLoS ONE, 17(4), e0266323. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0266323
4. Billington, J., Carroll, J., Davis, P., Healey, C., & Kinderman, P. (2013). A literature-based intervention for older people living with dementia. Perspectives in Public Health, 136(3), 139–146. https://doi.org/10.1177/1757913912470052 
5. Longden, E., Davis, P., Carroll, J., Billington, J., & Kinderman, P. (2015). Shared reading: Assessing the intrinsic value of literature. Medical Humanities, 41(2), 113–120. https://doi.org/10.1136/medhum-2015-010704 
6. Valtonen J. (2021). The Health Benefits of Autobiographical Writing: An Interdisciplinary Perspective. The Journal of medical humanities, 42(4), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10912-020-09631-9 
7. Pennebaker, J. W., & Seagal, J. D. (1999). Forming a story: the health benefits of narrative. Journal of clinical psychology, 55(10), 1243–1254. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-4679(199910)55:10<1243::AID-JCLP6>3.0.CO;2-N
8. Toepfer, S. M., & Walker, K. (2009). Letters of gratitude: Improving well-being through expressive writing. Journal of Writing Research, 1(3), 181-198. https://doi.org/10.17239/jowr-2009.01.03.1 
9. Reinhold, M., Bürkner, P.-C., & Holling, H. (2018). Effects of expressive writing on depressive symptoms: A meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 25, e12224. https://doi.org/10.1111/cpsp.12224
10. Pavlacic, J. M., Buchanan, E. M., Maxwell, N. P., Hopke, T. G., & Schulenberg, S. E. (2019). A meta-analysis of expressive writing on posttraumatic stress, posttraumatic growth, and quality of life. Review of General Psychology, 23(2), 230–250. https://doi.org/10.1177/1089268019831645 
11. Den Elzen, K., Neimeyer, R. A., & Lengelle, R. (Eds.). (2024). Living with loss: From grief to wellbeing (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003460657 
12. Wiltshire, K. (2022). Using the short story as a tool for well-being in arts and health workshops for the NHS staff. Short Fiction in Theory & Practice, 12 (The Health of the Short Story: Part 2), 203–218. https://doi.org/10.1386/fict_00062_1 

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Interest in sustainable arts in health programming is growing in the Netherlands. The increasing number of successful Arts in Health projects is encouraging administrators, funders, governments, researchers, and artists to explore the role that the arts can play in care and illness prevention. 

Arts in Health Netherlands initiated a white paper to survey the current situation and set the agenda for the future. The white paper considers  the structures that are needed in the Netherlands, to systematically support Arts in Health programming, to train practitioners, and to encourage research and policy formulation. The white paper is a first step toward a sustainable arts in health field.

The white paper is:

• Providing a unified statement from science, government, and the private sector on the situation in the Netherlands regarding Arts in Health, and the need for a sustainable field.
• Initiating active networking, knowledge-sharing, and the collaborations required to catalyse the field of Arts in Health in the Netherlands. 
• Setting the agenda for establishing stable, sustainable practice, education, and research in the field of Arts in Health.

Creation Process of the Whitepaper

Arts in Health Netherlands assembled a steering committee of front runners in the field, including representatives from the University of Groningen, Leyden Academy on Vitality and Ageing, University Medical Center Groningen, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Landelijk Kennisinstituut Cultuureducatie en Amateurkunst (LKCA).

To create awareness of the initiative and to involve a wider network of partners, the steering committee organized a kick-off meeting at the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) in October 2022.

The first draft of the white paper was created by the steering committee and co-authors. That draft served as a focal point for reflection and discussion with a wider national network, gathered in three roundtables in different parts of the country. At each roundtable, participants contributed to discussion and brainstorming on the practice, education, research, and policy of arts in health. 

Participants included healthcare professionals, artists, researchers, policy makers, managers, educators, practitioners and directors, all discussing how to make arts in health a sustainable field in the Netherlands. The roundtables were co-presented by Leyden Academy, Kunstloc Brabant, and University Medical Center Groningen in June and July 2023.

Each of the three roundtables focussed on a different domain;  hospital care, long-term care and the social domain. For impressions of the roundtables conversations, please read the summaries (in Dutch):

• Arts in Health in Long-term Care | Co-hosted by Leyden Academy
• Arts in Health in Social Domain | Co-hosted by Kunstloc Brabant
• Arts in Health in Hospitals | Co-hosted by University Medical Center Groningen

Publication, Launch Event and Handover

More than 200 people contributed to the final version of the white paper.
The publication was designed by the design firm JUST, which also created the Arts in Health Netherlands identity and website. The white paper was published by the University of Groningen Press, and given a public launch at the Care through Creativity event at the Grand Theatre in Groningen on 16 February 2024.  That festive event included  presentations and performances and inspiring examples from practice and research. The national newspaper NRC wrote an article about the event.

At the Care Through Creativity event, the  white paper was officially handed over by the WHO Arts in Health lead, Christopher Bailey, to the Province of Groningen alderman responsible for Arts & Culture, as well as Health & Wellbeing. At a separate event in Den Haag, the white paper was handed over to the director-general of curative care at the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) and the director of Heritage & Arts at the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW).

The white paper Arts in health in the Netherlands: A national agenda is available via the University of Groningen Press (open access), in both Dutch and English.

Institutions Offering Art Programmes

The arts and culture are an ongoing part of programming for AxionContinu’s clients in the Utrecht area. In addition to an extensive music programme — including a choir and the popular “apple pie concerts” — residents can take part in numerous cultural  activities such as the Museum on Friday program. AxionContinu also collaborates with students from the Utrecht University of the Arts (HKU) on We Heart Society, in which music students and residents create new songs together.

Vitalis (Eindhoven region) also offers a rich arts programme. The theatre project Trotse kameraden (“Proud Companions”) brings together residents, young people and local neighbourhood members to create a performance. Furthermore, there is AtelierSkon, a working place where care home residents, neighbours and other interested people upcycle cast-off  materials to make beautiful arts and crafts.

In Amsterdam, Cordaan provides care for people with intellectual disabilities, and also for older adults living with dementia. Cordaan’s Art in Care program focuses on improving quality of life, for example with the ambulant kunstteam (mobile art team) in which visual artists, writers, dancers and others use creativity to engage with Cordaan clients in the community, for example by visiting a museum together or making an artwork. Cordaan’s Mulltimedia digitale kunst (Digital Multimedia Art) program brings artists and people with intellectual disabilities together, to practice  photography, filmmaking and graphic design. 

Organisations Offering Art Activities

Dance

Dans op Recept (Northern Netherlands and Limburg) provides classes and workshops in creative movement and dance for older adults and people with chronic conditions, often within residential care settings. Dans op Recept  also trains care professionals to  integrate dance into their work. The dance company Leefmeesters, a part of Dans op Recept, creates dance pieces for public performance, in which professional dancers collaborate with people living with chronic illnesses.

Meerdandans (North Holland) offers dance lessons for people with Parkinson’s disease and acquired brain injury. Requests from other regions are referred to teachers within their network.

Het Huiskamerdanspaleis (Living Room Dance Palace) organises dance ‘moments’ for adults with dementia in their own, warmly decorated, surrounding. Instructors are present to guide participants. The work of Het Huiskamerdanspaleis also includes a special program for fall prevention: Het Danspaleis Valpreventie.

Even when they do not aim to produce therapeutic outcomes, participatory arts programs can provide positive support for wellbeing. Marc Vlemmix Dance offers creative movement classes for people living with MS, rheumatism and Parkinson’s. Participants are prepared for creative movement by teachers who help people with chronic conditions to build strength, balance and flexibility. 

Switch2Move combines music and movement for people with Parkinson's disease, dementia, MS or other chronic illnesses. People can join the lessons in the regions of Amsterdam, Tilburg and Den Bosch. People who are not able to leave their homes can join the dance lessons through video recordings.

Theatre

Theatre Veder performs shows in care homes, especially for demented elderly people, and using the Veder Contactmethode. In their performances, artists use poetry, music and theater to engage the long term memory of participants. Staff at  Theatre Veder also train care professionals to use  the Veder Contactmethode to improve communication with clients.

Cliniclowns is the longest-running Arts in Health program in the Netherlands, with ongoing programs in nearly every hospital in the country. Cliniclowns’ highly trained professional performers use play and music to engage children and healthcare staff find a sense of fun even in tense care environments. Cliniclowns has also developed a successful program for adults living with dementia. 

Visual Arts & Museums

Many museums have special programs at the intersection of art, healthcare, and well-being, see for example the Museum van de Geest, Rijksmuseum and Mauritshuis. For more information, you can also contact the Museum Association.

There are also initiatives that older adults with health issues to experience visual art in a meaningful way, such as the MuseumPlusBus. The program brings traveling exhibitions of high-quality reproductions to care homes. The program also arranges  transport that brings elderly people to museums.

KOO (The Hague) uses multiple arts strategies  to engage   elderly people living with chronic illnesses. Kleurenparade  is a series of five workshops that introduce seniors to a variety of art forms. During the creative activities, participants are encouraged to discuss their experiences and inspirations. Kunstknuffel uses  creative activities to “encourage meaningful artistic experiences where memories can take shape.”  All activities are guided by specially trained instructors.

Amphion Cultuurbedrijf is part of the programme Long Live Art, which offers a wide range of activities for residents of care facilities in the Achterhoek region. Their Cultuur met zorg (Culture with Care) program places resident artists in care centers, leading  small-scale activities such as felting, dancing and photography, and theatre. 

What Does the Science Say?

In 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) published an extensive review of research regarding the impact of  the arts on well-being. 30+ years of research on Arts in Health supports a compelling argument  that the arts support wellbeing.

A selection of the findings:

• Stroke rehabilitation: Dance improves muscle strength, posture and balance, and may stimulate memory and executive function.
• Parkinson’s disease and MS: Dance strengthens muscles and improves posture, mobility and quality of life.
• Psychogeriatrics: Drama activities improve contact between residents and care staff. Dance appeared to have a positive effect on speech. Literary activities can improve memory, listening skills and attention in people with dementia, and also reduce feelings of loneliness and social isolation.
• Palliative care: Art activities improve physical and psychological well-being and support conversations about illness and end-of-life.
• Anxiety and depression: Art can reduce feelings of anxiety and depressive symptoms related to illness, such as cancer.
  
  

Research programs in the Netherlands

The Dutch Ministries of Education, Culture & Science (OCW) and Health, Welfare & Sport (VWS) collaborate with Stichting RCOAK, Fonds Sluyterman Van Loo in the programme Arts and Culture in Long-Term Care and Support.  One of the goals is to map existing art initiatives in order to identify the success factors that contribute to an effective and sustainable offer. Amsterdam UMC and the Leyden Academy on Vitality and Ageing also joined forces in an Art in Health program to research the value of art in long-term care by describing existing art initiatives and evaluating their impact.

Awarded an OCW subsidy, the Arts in Health Netherlands network takes the next step toward giving art a permanent place in Dutch healthcare.

Thanks in part to a grant from the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, a national network of partners has joined forces to structurally integrate arts and culture into the Dutch healthcare and welfare sector. The financial support enables the network to begin realizing the ambitions outlined in the white paper, Arts in Health in the Netherlands: A Nationala Agenda.

"This is what we've been working towards for years," says Kirsten Krans, a founding member of Arts in Health Netherlands. "It's wonderful to be able to take the next step together to structurally integrate arts and culture into our healthcare system." The national agenda of Arts in Health Netherlands aligns with the transition from cure to care, with a focus on person-centered care and positive health.

National network

The national network brings together a unique coalition of organizations from healthcare, social welfare, arts and culture, education, and research.
Representatives from organizations include Kunsten '92, the University Medical Center Groningen, Codarts, Erasmus University Rotterdam, the National Knowledge Centre for Cultural Education and Amateur Arts (LKCA) , AxionContinu, Kunstloc Brabant, ROC Amsterdam, the Municipality ofTilburg, Vilans, Cultuur Oost, Raad van Twaalf, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, the University of Groningen, and the Aletta Jacobs School of Public Health.

Four pillars and intersectoral collaboration

At a launch meeting on November 28th 2025, the focus was on developing a shared vision for the future of the field. The diverse range of experts involved—from healthcare professionals and artists to researchers and policymakers––will support the ‘four pillars’ of the Arts inHealth field in the Netherlands: policy, practice, education, and research.

The participants particularly emphasized the need for intersectoral collaboration between health and culture. As the healthcare sector transitions toward more human and compassionate care, and the cultural sector argues for greater social relevance for the arts, the Arts in Health Netherlands network will help to strengthen both sectors and build bridges between them.

Four work packages

The network’s long-range goal is to sustainably embed the arts in our national healthcare system. To accomplish this, four work packages have been created to address each of the four goals of the national agenda (policy, practice, education, and research). The work packages will: establish a national knowledge platform; define professional competencies and a training network; formulate policy to promote Arts in Health; and establish a national research agenda for the field.

Join the network

Organizations interested in joining the national Arts in Health network can contact: info@artsinhealth.nl

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Social prescribing is a strategy to help people with health conditions that do not require clinical treatment. A person suffering from grief, loneliness, addiction, or unemployment (for example), can be referred to a trained ‘wellbeing coach’ who helps that person make a personalized plan to engage in activities, events or training with community groups, non-profits, workshops, cultural institutions, and others. Participatory arts practice can be one of the ‘prescriptions’.  

The UK is widely implementing social prescribing programmes, and the Netherlands and other countries are exploring it as well. The Dutch pilot programmes was implemented nationwide with some promising results and encouragement from insurers, primary care physicians, and patients. Read more about the Dutch version of social prescribing within the project Welzijn op Recept.

Social prescribing

• Recognises that a person's health is determined in part by social, economic and environmental factors.
• Approaches health positively, focusing on what a person is able to do, instead of on what they cannot. The person is encouraged to become active in caring for their own wellbeing. 
• Can help build social connections that support a variety of health outcomes.

The social prescribing strategy shows promise for supporting certain arts in health practices in the community. However, that is only one aspect of the field, and does not address the role that arts in health can plan in care institutions, for example.