This year Jon Hall was invited to give a short presentation about creative music therapy for the C.R.E.W. (Creativity for Recovery and Enabling Wellbeing) project at the Arts Health ECRN event held in the Bush theatre, Kings College London.
Creativity for Recovery and Enabling Wellbeing is an innovative project that uses creativity and live performance to work alongside people who have experienced mental health difficulties. The project was delivered for Barnet, Enfield & Haringey Mental Health Trust, culminating in a final celebratory event in September 2017 and evaluated by the University of East London (UEL).
It was a pleasure to share some of the methodology, video documentation and summary of UEL’s data. At the evening’s event themes emerged around the need for more collaboration and support for doctors and healthcare professionals working in pressurised environments. Various creative arts practices described ways of working using anecdote, creative artworks and creativity to bring more awareness around some of the complex situations and problems arising in medical and healthcare environments.
This highlighted some of the challenges for Outsider Music currently delivering Music and Co-production - a pilot project designed to build staff and patient relationships in hospital using music therapy and song writing. Although this has enormous potential in the future to build good relationships and supportive networks there are many challenges in creating dialogue.
The Final event for this project will take place at Chestnut Community Centre on Friday June 22nd and will showcase some of the amazing new music, poems and songs that have been created by everyone who taken part over the last 6 months. Its free entry and all welcome.