This article chronicles an art therapist’s experience of having osteoarthritis in both right and left trapeziometacarpal joints and subsequent surgery which provided the opportunity to use art... Show More

This article chronicles an art therapist’s experience of having osteoarthritis in both right and left trapeziometacarpal joints and subsequent surgery which provided the opportunity to use art making to manage pain during the recovery period. Meditative painting was used whenever pain was experienced post-surgery, and two series of twelve seven-inch paintings were created. Simple criteria were set and followed for at least three weeks post-surgery, and the questions asked were: Will meditative painting relieve post-surgery pain? Can meditative painting be used to reduce or eliminate the need for pain medication? Are there patterns in the artwork that can be seen in the healing process? It was found that meditative painting minimized pain to the extent that pain medication was unnecessary. Patterns were seen in both series that may illustrate aspects of the healing process.

This paper will argue that the arts can contribute to wellbeing by supporting positive mental wellbeing as demonstrated in the breadth and quality of current arts and mental health practice. This... Show More

This paper will argue that the arts can contribute to wellbeing by supporting positive mental wellbeing as demonstrated in the breadth and quality of current arts and mental health practice. This practice challenges existing notions of evidence-based policy used to inform the development of public services. The exploration of relationship between arts and mental health highlights the specific interventions that demonstrate effective engagement with people experiencing mental health issues. The paper outlines the contextual background of arts and mental health and makes reference to the ongoing influence of earlier art movements like Outsider art. Then, the following examples of practice: art therapy, social prescribing, community arts projects and art in public spaces, will be brought together in order to classify arts and mental health as a distinct field which can be compared and contrasted to the wider arts and health movement. Finally this paper will deconstruct and analyze what arts and mental health practice means in terms of understanding mental health; challenging what is accepted as artwork and the role of people with mental health needs as artists. This paper asks for new and appropriate ways to measure the outcomes of the arts as a public service that recognize the expertise of the people and communities creating and experiencing the art.

This article examines the health benefits, for healthcare service users with various disabilities, of participating in a European collaborative art project. The first section describes the... Show More

This article examines the health benefits, for healthcare service users with various disabilities, of participating in a European collaborative art project. The first section describes the organisations involved and the background for the project. The findings – based on evaluations, testimonies and interviews – suggest that the project promoted wellbeing; stimulated a changed notion of social identity; and also contributed to social engagement and inclusion. The second section starts with considering the role of the Community Learning Programme at Tate Modern Gallery in delivering inclusive workshops, and evaluates it with respect to service users’ needs; this section concludes by questioning the social role of galleries and museums and explores how these could contribute significantly to the health and wellbeing of local communities by promoting arts and health programmes.

Many think that eating meat is nutritionally necessary and beneficial. Industrialising livestock production provides meat that is often “cheaper” than fruit and vegetables. In reality, this has come... Show More

Many think that eating meat is nutritionally necessary and beneficial. Industrialising livestock production provides meat that is often “cheaper” than fruit and vegetables. In reality, this has come at a cost for human, animal and ecological welfare. Western mainstream meat consumption is a leading cause of increasing ill-health, diabetes, cancers, non-communicable and chronic diseases, malnourishment, obesity, antibiotic resistance, spread of infectious diseases, hunger and possible global epidemics as well as climate change, biodiversity loss, water and land degradation. Rather than stop this, vested interests continue to promote meat consumption. If people are deliberately misinformed or have no access to reliable information, what chance do they have to make the right food choices? This paper outlines flexitarianism (flexible vegetarianism) as a personal user-driven opportunity to combat the geopolitical and industrial duplicity about meat. Consumers should have enough information about the implications of their nutritional choices. In addition to health benefits, flexitarianism can help mitigate climate change, environmental and social destruction and reduce animal suffering. The proposed information policy interventions are assessed against their impact on key stakeholders and overall value for public health and environmental wellbeing. They offer an opportunity to reclaim personal health and improve the health of the planet.

An illness narrative is constructed when a person engages with both internal dialogues with himself and in interactions with the others during their journey; these can be transformed into dramatic... Show More

An illness narrative is constructed when a person engages with both internal dialogues with himself and in interactions with the others during their journey; these can be transformed into dramatic script for social and self –beneficence. This paper explores whether process-centered creative drama could be the optimum modality for this dramatization. It also suggests that this process can be captured to assist the ill person, their care-givers, and others in understanding the dynamic process of illness.

Parkinson’s disease affects millions of individuals worldwide. The physical symptoms of PD are devastating. In the same sense, the cognitive symptoms of PD also have a profound effect on afflicted... Show More

Parkinson’s disease affects millions of individuals worldwide. The physical symptoms of PD are devastating. In the same sense, the cognitive symptoms of PD also have a profound effect on afflicted individuals. This study examined the cognitive impairments of Parkinson’s disease and how they can be treated using art therapy. The author of this study met with one individual who suffered from cognitive impairment due to Parkinson’s disease. The two met for eight sessions over a six-week period. During this time, an A-B-A single-subject research design was established, with multiple baselines. Over the course of six weeks, the participant partook in various art therapy directives. The results of this study indicated that art therapy helped decrease the participant’s level of depression and helped maintain the participant’s current level of dementia, partially supporting this research study’s hypothesis. The results of this study underscore the need for further research in this area.

The study investigated the effectiveness of an art therapy intervention in improving relationship quality of spousal caregivers and their spouses with Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Two single case... Show More

The study investigated the effectiveness of an art therapy intervention in improving relationship quality of spousal caregivers and their spouses with Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Two single case studies were conducted, each composed of a caregiver and spouse with AD. Intervention consisted of three art therapy sessions based on visual communication, or the mutual creation of artwork. Relationship quality was measured throughout the study using clinical notes, pretest and posttest, and caregiver daily reports of positive interactions with their spouse. Couple dynamics were found to influence how positively each art therapy directive was viewed; however, both caregivers noted valuing art therapy interventions for providing recreation and socialization. The intervention resulted in increased positive interactions in both case studies.

Mentoring is known to promote development of professional skills irrespective of the discipline. It is a natural phenomenon that emanates from the desire of a senior and experienced individual to... Show More

Mentoring is known to promote development of professional skills irrespective of the discipline. It is a natural phenomenon that emanates from the desire of a senior and experienced individual to give and the need of an inexperienced novice to grow. Mutual trust, faith and respect while working towards a shared vision of objectives and achievements are the main driving force of a mentoring relationship. It requires the mentor to give selflessly and the mentee to accept graciously while conveying his needs and being an active partner in the process. A mentor is looked upon as a guide, confidante, counselor, teacher, friend, supporter, and much more in professional and career development as well as psychosocial or personal aspects. The mentee is expected to take a proactive role in guiding and managing the process. Despite a clear need for mentoring during and after medical school, very few medical schools in India foster this relationship. Most have student advisor programs or counseling cells that are oriented primarily to problem solving. There is also a lack of full understanding of the roles of a mentor or a mentee even though the terms are used rather frequently. A mentoring relationship could be formally established as a part of an institutional or departmental mentoring program, long term or short term, with a specific purpose; or, for overall career progression, individual or in a small group. Also, the mentees’ requirements at different stages of training and career may decide the type of mentoring relationship. The needs of a first year medical undergraduate student are different from those of a final year student or a postgraduate resident. There is an imminent need to train the medical school faculty in mentoring skills and orient the students to ‘mentor-mentee relationship’.

Medical students need to be equipped with knowledge and the attitude to tackle clinical complexity. The transition from classroom to clinical practice can be eased by the application of innovative... Show More

Medical students need to be equipped with knowledge and the attitude to tackle clinical complexity. The transition from classroom to clinical practice can be eased by the application of innovative student-centered learning methods. Through user-driven learning, which is asynchronous conversational learning in the web space between computer users, students can be encouraged to develop a comprehensive fund of experiential knowledge to enable them to quickly build physician-patient rapport and to apply decision-making skills in the face of uncertainty. This process offers medical students the opportunity to develop empathy and to participate in evidence sharing peer support groups. This article explores the concept of user-driven learning and discusses how this approach could be used in current health care settings to address knowledge gaps and inspire students and teachers alike.