Art in hospitals...a waste of money?

barbiedoll

As an employee of the NHS, I am used to seeing vast amounts of (public) money wasted on a daily basis. From the mammoth I.T projects that never seem to get finished, right down to the pointless blood tests that are performed on practically every patient for no discernible benefit, the money that is squandered really does boggle the mind.

A particular bugbear of mine is the money spent on art in and around hospitals. I'm not talking about the colourful murals and artwork in the childrens wards, I mean the real "arty" stuff that they seem to have a special budget for. The argument used is that it is for the "patient's benefit". I don't know if I'm just a pleb, but have a look at what I see when I go into work in the morning and tell me if you find it uplifting and/or beneficial. Because, to be honest, every time I look at this sculpture, all I notice is two shiny buttocks greeting me whenever I enter or leave the place.

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=cross+the+divide+sculpture+picture&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=s8d&sa=X&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&channel=np&biw=1024&bih=629&tbm=isch&prmd=imvnsb&tbnid=9lwZ6yrvK1DvCM:&imgrefurl=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cross_the_Divide.JPG&docid=2T8hb-KCU9lICM&w=2048&h=1536&ei=xuqATpP3DsrNsgbS0fmBDg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=88&vpy=192&dur=1413&hovh=194&hovw=259&tx=140&ty=92&page=2&tbnh=120&tbnw=155&start=16&ndsp=15&ved=1t:429,r:5,s:16

I bet it cost a bloody fortune too! :mad::mad:

Opinions??

Errata

I can only speak for the Bexley Wing at St James in Leeds. It has a fair amount of art throughout the atrium and all nine floors, a regularly changing exhibition and occasionally a pianist playing a grand piano. It lifts my heart every time I go there and I'm fairly sure that feeling is shared by a great number of cancer patients and their relatives who are regular visitors there for treatment, stays, reviews and etc.
I have no idea what the staff think about it.
Charing Cross hospital also has a fair amount of artwork and lunchtime musical recitals which research shows has had the effect of reducing analgesic use.

Kaz2904

Errata wrote: »

Charing Cross hospital also has a fair amount of artwork and lunchtime musical recitals which research shows has had the effect of reducing analgesic use.

Ah but that's probably only because the nurses are too busy looking at pictures and listening to music to give pain relief.















I'm KIDDING! I'm a nurse myself. We have some beautiful artwork in the corridor outside my unit. It's all beaches and beach huts and what not. Many of which were local photos. They always make me calm and relaxed when I walk past. I notice that relatives always drift towards them too rather than the gloomier part. Wonder why? It's just a bit uplifting, the beauty of simplicity.
It's like when you've had a horrible night and you open the blinds in the morning to a beautiful sunrise. Always makes the patients cheer up. They eat better too IMHO.

Becles

When my son was two, he was critically ill in hospital with double pneumonia. I was staying at the hospital with him most of the time and juggling care of my other son (then aged four), so it was pretty stressful and tiring..

They had a parents only sitting room on the ward with a sofa, TV and DVD player and some beautiful scenic countryside pictures on the wall.

It was lovely to go into the room when my son was sleeping and lay on the sofa and imagine I was in the countryside. It certainly helped me relax and recharge and I'm pleased the pictures were there as they helped me escape from the stress for a short time.

bigmomma051204

I believe the point here is really not should there BE artwork in hospitals (which there should as it cheers the places up a bit!) BUT rather, should copious amounts of money be spent on comissioning ridiculously overpriced sculptures and artworks from local artists etc etc. Definitely not. There shouldn't even BE a part of an NHS budget spent on things like this! There is simply no need. Artwork (such as prints etc) can be purchased from anywhere - online, dept stores etc etc for a fraction of the cost of comissioned nonsense - it will do the job just as well and will mean the money saved can be spent on the realy reason the NHS exist - to CARE for PEOPLE. :cool:

xoxo_2

Our hospital has artwork all through the A&E department, main corridors and waiting areas. Having spent an awful lot of time there in the past few years because of my grandads illness I have to say the paintings and photographs were lovely to look at. They brightened the place up and were something to talk about during the long hours sat around waiting for my Grandad to come out of surgery or whilst only 1 of us could sit with him etc. We also used to take him down the corridors and out to the main entrance and he enjoyed looking at them and seeing places he was no longer well enough to visit (local beaches etc) through photographs.

AFAIK though (from reading labels on the paintings and wall plaques) all the artwork in our hospital is done by local GCSE/A-Level/Uni art students and changed every year, apart from the main entrance which is painted directly on wall quite high up and sponsored by 'friends of the hospital' rather than coming from the hospital budgets. I wouldn't want someone to receive less care so we could have money to spend on a sculpture in the hospital grounds for example.

jamespir

thing is nhs did not pay for it the council did

dirtysexymonkey

bigmomma051204 wrote: »

I believe the point here is really not should there BE artwork in hospitals (which there should as it cheers the places up a bit!) BUT rather, should copious amounts of money be spent on comissioning ridiculously overpriced sculptures and artworks from local artists etc etc. Definitely not. There shouldn't even BE a part of an NHS budget spent on things like this! There is simply no need. Artwork (such as prints etc) can be purchased from anywhere - online, dept stores etc etc for a fraction of the cost of comissioned nonsense - it will do the job just as well and will mean the money saved can be spent on the realy reason the NHS exist - to CARE for PEOPLE. :cool:

so people who donate money for the express use of art should be stopped from doing so? thats where the money comes from, not the nhs budget.

dirtysexymonkey

jamespir wrote: »

thing is nhs did not pay for it the council did

thought that a charitable foundation paid for it with money donated for it specifically?

RosaBernicia

Errata wrote: »

Charing Cross hospital also has a fair amount of artwork and lunchtime musical recitals which research shows has had the effect of reducing analgesic use.

See http://www.imperial.nhs.uk/imperialcharity


I would have assumed that most art in NHS premises was supported by donations, not public funds. If it is bought from the Trust's own money then this should be shown somewhere in the annual report.

Rosa xx

bluenoseam

i know it certainly made that short but at the same time incredibly long walk from waiting room to radiotherapy table a lot more enjoyable - but the majority of the artwork in The Beatson i believe was donated by local artists and the stuff in my ward was all paid for by the Teenage Cancer Trust & Clic Sargeant for the benefit of patients and family.