Page 25 - UHF_HereMagazine2025_21447

The arts are more
than decoration or
entertainment — they
are a vital part of healing.
And from gallery walls to the hospital
bedside, the University Hospital
Foundation’s Arts in Health programs
are proving just that.
“I was lying in a hospital bed for
days and days,” explains Margaret
Iveson, who was admitted to the
University of Alberta Hospital after a
fall down the stairs left her with three
broken bones in her neck, four broken
vertebrae and a broken disk in her
back in May of 2023. “One day, these
two young women came into my room
and started talking about something
called the Artists on the Wards pro-
gram. I said it sounded interesting,
then one of them asked, ‘Would you
like to make some art today?’”
The Foundation’s Arts in Health
programs are groundbreaking in their
approach to integrating art into patient
care. More than just framed paintings
on walls, the program includes the
McMullen Gallery and manages a
diverse collection of over 2,000 art
pieces and the Artists on the Wards.
“Not many places have all three
components,” explains Tyler Sherard,
associate director, Arts in Health at
the University Hospital Foundation.
“In an acute care hospital, this level of
artistic integration is incredibly rare.”
Bringing art to the bedside
Artists on the Wards extends the
healing power of the arts directly
into the hands of patients, visitors
and health-care staff at the University
of Alberta Hospital, inclusive of
the Mazankowski Alberta Heart
Institute. Whether through painting,
music or literary arts, these bedside
encounters led by professional
artists and skilled volunteers help
ease stress, lower cortisol levels and
improve emotional well-being.
Bev Ross, an Artist on the Wards
for 17 years before her retirement,
spoke about the program’s profound
impact. “When you come into a
hospital, most of your identity is
stripped away,” she says. “You’re not
in your own home, wearing your own
clothes, or surrounded by your loved
ones. Everyone who enters your room
is there for a medical reason. Arts in
Health offers something different —
escape, diversion and connection.
Visual art, music and literary
expression act as keys that unlock
emotions and memories. Sharing
stories can be healing; it helps people
feel seen and supported.”
For Iveson, the Artists on the Wards
program provided an unexpected
moment of joy. The artists who visited
her room brought pre-cut paper and
invited her to create butterflies. They
discussed journaling, a passion of
hers. “I still have the butterflies we
made,” she says. “Although I didn’t
know it at the time, that visit was
exactly what I needed.” >
“Would you like to
make some art
today?”
G i v e t o U H F . c a 25