Research

Can the arts make people better?

When people talk of research into arts in healthcare activities, they are usually referring to an attempt to gather measurable, quantifiable evidence to prove its benefits in terms of health outcomes, to establish whether participation in an arts project has enabled faster recovery or meant that a patient has required fewer drugs or experienced less pain.

View Through a Window May Influence Recovery From Surgery 1984 Ulrich, R. S.
Perhaps the most quoted piece of research in this field, by Roger Ulrich, a behavioural scientist in the USA, refers not to the arts directly but to the impact of the environment on patient recovery rates.
Ulrich, set up controlled tests in hospital to prove that patients recovering from gallbladder surgery got better more quickly and took fewer painkillers when they could see a view of a natural landscape through a window rather than just bare walls.

“Patients in rooms with a view had shorter post-operative hospital stays, averaging 7.96 days, against the average of 8.7 days. They also had fewer negative comments on their nursing care plans and had lower scores of minor post-surgical complications such as headaches and nausea. The patients who had only a wall to look at needed more doses of potent narcotics – on average 2.48 doses versus 0.96 doses.”
From A Report on the Value and Use of the Visual Arts in Healthcare by Nicola Gardener, Published by NHS Estates.

A Comparative Study of the Impact of Environmental Design upon Hospital Staff and Patients
A study carried out at Leeds Teaching Hospitals by Dr Phil Leather at The Institute of Work, Health and Organizations at the University of Nottingham entitled A Comparative Study of the Impact of Environmental Design upon Hospital Staff and Patients uncovered similar evidence demonstrating the impact of design on hospital staff and patients. The study found that improved patient environments in the newly built Jubilee Wing at Leeds General Infirmary, which included commissioned artworks by Tonic, the arts project of the hospital, enhanced recovery times and improved patients’ perceptions of the care they received from staff.

Study of the Effects of the Visual and Performing Arts
There has been less research directly into the use of the arts, however, a three year Study of the Effects of the Visual and Performing Arts at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital is due to be completed towards the end of 2002 by research project director Dr Rosalia Staricoff.

“The aim of the study is to produce a quantitative analysis and critical evaluation of the effect of arts on patients, staff and visitors. The research is using a rigorous scientific methodology and statistical analysis using controlled groups.  Physiological responses, such as blood pressure, foetal heartbeat, amount of drugs, requirement for analgesia and immune system response are being measured. The findings revealed that live music in the waiting area of the high-risk antenatal clinic was effective in lowering blood pressure levels of patients waiting for their appointments - compared to the levels of patients who waited in absence of live music. The results also showed that the unborn child responded to live music by significantly increasing the number of accelerations in its heartbeat - which is a sign of well being.
  
“The study also found that for patients receiving chemotherapy treatment, visual art was more effective in reducing levels of depression, while live music was more effective in reducing levels of anxiety. In terms of staff evaluation, two thirds of the respondents - medics, nurses, administration - indicated that the integration of the arts in healthcare greatly influences their decision to apply for a job or stay in the current one, according to the report.

“The integration of the visual and performing arts in healthcare induces significant differences in clinical outcomes, enhances the quality and management of patient care and contributes to increasing job satisfaction and staff recruitment and retention, says the report.”
From A Report on the Value and Use of the Visual Arts in Healthcare by Nicola Gardener, Published by NHS Estates.

The Journal of the Royal Society for the Promotion of Good Health Volume 121 ISSN Number 1466 - 4240