Young artists help create healing environment for Reid OB/GYN patients

June 26, 2024 -- Reid Health has a longstanding practice of using artwork throughout its health system to provide a healing environment for patients and their families.

Reid OB/GYN is building on the practice of incorporating art while creating a more adolescent-friendly environment by showcasing the artwork created by Wayne County youth, ages 10 and over.

Twenty pieces of art are on display through a partnership with Reid Health, Richmond Art Museum (RAM), the Boys & Girls Clubs of Wayne County, Richmond Community Schools, Centerville-Abington School District, and Seton Catholic Schools. The Artwork Project aligns with Reid's mission to provide a healing environment by creating a welcoming atmosphere offering help and reassurance through the work of local and regional artists.

Lance Crow, Education Director for RAM, said there's a plethora of research on the healing nature of the arts, especially in a hospital or medical setting. The Mayo Clinic supports the effect of viewing art and what it can do for health, including increasing serotonin levels, stimulating new thinking, and creating a more hopeful future.

RAM provided themes for the school-age artists to collectively focus on the positive sensibilities which should help inform families and community, Crow said. The themes focus on Nurture & Grow; Love: Self, Neighbor, Family/Loved One, or Pets; Peace on Earth; Wonderment and Awe or Hopes and Dreaming; Color Your World; Hope and Resilience; and Healthy Neighborhood/Community.

"The arts help patients to have an increasingly more positive hospital experience emotionally, but it can also aid their physical recovery. The impact of arts inclusion in these settings extends not only to the patient but to the staff as well," Crow said. "We are excited to be part of this important initiative."

Jason Troutwine, Reid Health Vice President/Reid Foundation President, said the Artwork Project adds to the patient's surroundings with a sense of warmth, comfort, and scenic views.

"Creating a healing environment for our patients, staff, and community is part of Reid's culture. Artwork and the emotion that it evokes is very much a part of that process," Troutwine said.

"We're fortunate to have many resources in our community such as the Richmond Art Museum, the Boys & Girls Club of Wayne County and Richmond Community Schools that can work with our youth to foster their talent and bring their artwork to support Reid's healing environment. This has been a great collaboration."

Kellie Bush, Clinical Manager for Reid OB/GYN, said patients have enjoyed the addition of the artwork. For some of the nervous patients, the colorful pieces serve as a good way to start a conversation, she added.

After youth create the artwork, pieces are selected by club or school staff members to send onto RAM. Once there, RAM staff and its Education and Exhibition committees review submissions and select display pieces.

The artwork will change twice a year. The Boys and Girls Clubs members will create artwork during the spring and summer for fall installation. Artwork for the fall and winter for spring's installation will be created by RCS students, and eventually students across Wayne County.

Alicia Painter, Chief Executive Officer for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Wayne County, said the hope is for the artwork to provide a more welcoming and calming space for OB/GYN patients. The project fits with the club's focus on sense of community, helping others, being kind, and being productive members of society.

"This project really aligns with that in the sense that it's encouraging our members to give back, and sometimes giving back is taking a skill that you're really good at and sharing it to help someone else," Painter said.

Additionally, the partnership provides club members with an opportunity to have their artwork displayed in the community.

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Wayne County serves about 600 club members daily. Art programs are offered at all five units, The Club Teen Center, and two of the clubs have standalone art rooms. All club members with a passion for art are encouraged to participate.

Art is a program that helps young people expand to other programs, Painter said, like the STEAM room for the club's McDaniel Unit which focuses on science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics.

The Artwork Project is the result of community partnerships that enhance programs and services for patients and residents from across the area.

"The volume of patients seeking OB/GYN care at Reid is a varied demographic from all over the region," Crow said. "By installing artwork created under the premise of highlighting a positive aspect of the community, a simple image can take the edge off an otherwise uncomfortable or compulsory appointment. Original artwork warms up spaces and makes them more inviting."

Painter said the project shows the power of collaboration, giving nonprofits the ability to work together with the sole purpose of providing unique opportunities for young people while better serving and meeting the needs of people in the community.

"At the Boys and Girls Clubs we're all about providing new opportunities to youth so being able to have our youth's artwork on display, and hopefully provide a sense of calm, or a better sense of welcoming or belonging to any patients at Reid, we're very open to that," Painter said. "We just appreciate the opportunity to be able to be a part of this project."

Caption for top photo: Artwork by Lydia Golden of Centerville High School