Arts in Healthcare: Best Practices
Compiled and Edited by
Anthony Heaphy, Intern and Anita Bansal, Intern
The Arts in Healthcare have grown into an international movement that works to
infuse the full spectrum of the arts into healthcare settings—including design, visual,
performing and literary arts—resulting in programs and healthcare environments that
are welcoming and uplifting for caregivers, patients, their families, and visitors.
Creative Kids, Inc. El Paso, TX
In 1999, Creative Kids launched Project AIM (Arts in Motion), a program specifically geared toward pediatric oncology patients at Providence Memorial Hospital. The program was selected as a semi- finalist for the 2007 President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities’ Coming Up Taller Awards. With Project AIM, Creative Kids takes a non-traditional setting and engages patients in the arts with a menu of visual media, including painting on canvas, printmaking, and graphic arts, among others. The program affords children the opportunity to connect with their own creativity, self-expression, and imagination. Children facing terminal illnesses often experience a daunting range of physical and emotional symptoms and utilizing their creative talents helps create a sense of calm and lift their spirits. Project AIM is supported by the Rio Grande Cancer Foundation, the McKee Foundation, Price’s Creameries, Texas Women for the Arts, the Texas Commission on the Arts, the El Paso Community Foundation, the Stern Foundation, the Walt Disney Corporation, theWalter Hightower Foundation, and the Tenet Foundation.
Artist Stephen Ingle, Co-Founder of Creative Kids, works with patients at Providence Hospital.
Graphic Arts: Patients at Providence Children’s Hospital can participate in digital media and graphic design classes with professional artists using sophisticated computers and technology. The classes encourage patients to leave their rooms and express themselves in new and various forms of mixed media.
Exhibitions: An important aspect of Project AIM is the exhibition of the artwork created by children whose lives are affected by cancer. The exhibition gives patients a sense of accomplishment and pride, while providing the public with an opportunity to view the depthand richness of their art. These exhibitions can be seen at the Creative Kids OLOGallery and in the Imagination Gallery at Providence Children’s Hospital.