The Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH) has been lauded at the 2014 Design and Health International Academy Awards, receiving a High Commendation in the ‘Use of Art in the Patient Environment’ category.
The award recognises the full scope of creative elements integrated throughout the hospital, including art, music and play therapy, the Education Institute, the Festival for Healthy Living and the Arts at the Royal Children’s Hospital (ARCH) program.
‘I’m absolutely delighted that awards organisations are beginning to consider the experiential benefits of arts activities, beyond just art in the physical environment,’ says RCH Creative Arts Director Victoria Jones (pictured, above).
‘We strive to go beyond simply using art and design features to make the hospital look good—we want to embed creativity into the daily hospital experience to make it feel good.’
Great effort has been invested during the past year in making the RCH environment less stressful—and more stimulating—for the entire community, family and staff included.
‘It’s important to look after the people who are looking after the patients,’ Victoria says.
Some of the ambitious, creative projects that comprised the award submission include (among others):
- ‘Portrait of a Hospital’—A week-long series of portrait workshops around the hospital in celebration of Cultural Diversity Week
- A giant World Map, on which patients, families and staff are encouraged to place stickers on their countries of origin, to demonstrate the diversity of the hospital community
- ‘Outside In’—a global film creation and sharing project, inviting young hospital patients from around the world to create short films during their hospital stay.
The RCH’s use of art to creative engage with hospital-specific issues also impressed the Academy.
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Hand Hygiene is a good example,’ Victoria says. ‘We did a popup art studio with hand-focused artworks and the Hand Hygiene Silent Disco. We don’t want to use art just because it’s nice—we’re taking creative activities and making them relevant to the hospital experience.’
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So what’s on next for our award-winning arts program?
‘We are going to be a part of a Melbourne-wide project the Melbourne Art Centre is running based on the concept of “home”,’ Victoria says. ‘We know home is an important idea for children in hospitals, because that’s where everyone wants to be.’
She also reveals that the final phase of the hand hygiene art campaign is soon to begin.
‘It’s kind of a secret,’ she says. ‘It’s going to be a bit abstract, but once it begins, you can’t miss it.’