Exploring the Intersection of Creative Health and Health Humanities
In April, our Director, Alex Coulter, and Research and Policy Manager, Jane Hearst, jointly hosted a research workshop with Professor Sally Marlow and Professor Neil Vickers from King's College London. The aim was to explore the history of and current synergies between Creative Health and the Health Humanities.
The event brought together academics from a wide range of disciplines with creative health practitioners and provider organisations. The questions being explored at the workshop included:
- What is the state of the fields of Creative Health and Health Humanities, individually and together?
- Where is there overlap between the two fields and how can we harness their potential for research and education?
Alex gave an introduction to how the field of creative health has evolved since the work by the Nuffield Trust to raise the importance of the humanities in medicine and emphasise the place of the arts in health and wellbeing, which resulted in the publication of the report Arts, Health and Well-being in 2001.
The field of Creative Health has developed significantly since then, with major milestones in research, policy and practice. Professor Neil Vickers spoke about the history of the Health Humanities or Medical Humanities and the move from medical schools into humanities departments in universities. The inclusion of the humanities in medical education has gradually eroded since changes to the curriculum in 2012.
Workshop participants discussed their priorities for research to collaborate across academic disciplines and practice with lots of exciting proposals in the mix. Further workshops will focus on joint projects and funding applications.
You can find out more about the Health Humanities in this podcast with Professor Neil Vickers.
