I had a very interesting meeting this with Anita Boles and Evelyn at 'Society for the Arts in Healthcare'. They have the huge task of identifying and bridging the gap between Artists and Health Care Staff - and through their dedication they are making this change, not only nationally but internationally too! So more and more health care facilities are becoming aware of the importance of the Arts and the roles they play. As an organisation they hope to develop sound research which supports the Art Impact on an individuals wellbeing.
It was interesting for me to discuss the differences between 'Art Therapists' and 'Creative Practitioners' within Healthcare settings with Anita and Evelyn. Due to Art Therapists being credited they are seen as beneficial to health, therefore training programs have being developed to credit Creative Practitioners to do the same. Which i think is unbelievable! And i would certainly do the training...this maybe another excuse to pop back to the US for a bit and to get extra credentials!
There will be a huge extract on these current issues we discussed during this meeting in my final report, so if you need any additional information, please get in touch at: