Arts and Health

There are a lot of ways in which the arts can improve health and wellbeing either individually or collectively.

Arts on Prescription

Arts on Prescription is a 'by referral' service which offers arts and creative activities for participants. AoP is usually additional to medical intervention and supports peoples' recovery from a diagnosed condition through engagement in the arts. Arts on prescription can form part of wider social prescribing initiatives that involve “prescriptions” for  sports, nature based activity, or advice on debt, housing or addictions.

If you want to know more about Social Prescribing click here.

Participatory arts

This encompasses a myriad of opportunities to get involved in arts activity in support of social, physical and mental health. Community settings, as well as healthcare settings, provide ways for people to get involved in the arts with a view to improving and sustaining wellbeing, and increasing community health & resilience.  

Medical training and Medical Humanities

The arts have always been important in medicine to aid understanding and explore the ethics of medicine. Training of healthcare practitioners often involves the arts e.g. role-play, visualisation, unlocking ways of understanding data.
  

Arts Therapy

Arts therapists register with the Health Professions Council.  Registered professionals have accreditation to deliver arts activity as a way to communicate and form the basis of the therapy.  Art therapy is well established and includes visual arts, music therapy and drama therapy.  

Arts in healthcare environments

Artwork included in healthcare settings helps to improve experiences for both patients and staff. This can extend to hospital art exhibitions, spatial design such as signage, gardens and clinical spaces as well as designs for lighting, seating etc.