PMR 4250 Arts, Health and Well-Being

You could play an important role in enhancing and supporting the health and well-being of those you serve through the arts. Think of a time you or someone you know was admitted to the hospital. Most likely all their personal belongings were taken away from them and placed in a plastic bag, they were given a hospital gown to wear, assigned a medical record number, shown to a sterile room, and maybe even given a diagnosis. This experience can feel uninviting, isolating, and can take away self-identity. Similarly, walking through the doors of a medical center for an out-patient appointment, to support a loved one in surgery, or even being a healthcare provider yourself can feel overwhelming. So how might we create a healthcare experience that keeps the creativity, individuality, and joy of all of us intact? In this elective you will learn how Arts in Health Professionals bring visual arts, music, dance, theater, and creative writing into healthcare to humanize the healthcare experience. Through readings, experiential creative arts, and shadowing at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and the surrounding community, students will learn:

1. To distinguish the scope of practice of different arts in health professionals and creative arts therapists;
2. How arts engagement can strengthen treatment plans and improve health outcomes;
3. How they themselves can get involved in arts in health.

To address provider burnout, this course is further designed to promote self-care and psychoeducation not only for the future patients of USU students, but also for the students themselves.

 

For more information:

Email: the Walter Reed Arts in Health Program at [e-mail]

POC Sarah Moore, Community Arts in Health Specialist

Credits

4

Offered

This elective is offered as a hybrid with both virtual and in person components.