Arts on prescription?

Written By Tasha Golden

Updated. First published in 2022.

What if your doctor or therapist could prescribe a museum visit, art classes, or time in nature to support your health? The “CultureRx” program in Massachusetts is the first to pilot this concept statewide.

I was honored to lead the evaluation of this pilot, and am delighted to share the FREE REPORT on our findings:

UPDATE: This pilot evaluation led to the groundbreaking resource: “Arts on Prescription: A Field Guide for US Communities.” (Free to download!) You can also find the peer-reviewed article about CultureRx here.

What Is CultureRx?

“CultureRx” is the first statewide “arts on prescription” program in the U.S. Launched by Mass Cultural Council, it offers a way for healthcare providers to “prescribe” arts and cultural experiences that support their patients’ health.

Did you know? Medical care accounts for only 10-20% of our health. The rest is determined by behaviors as well as contextual factors such as housing, food, employment, education, social connection, transportation, safety, and more.

This means that to be truly effective, healthcare practices have to be able to point patients to community resources and opportunities that can support them in healing and thriving.

(For more on the “WHY” behind arts on prescription, see the Field Guide and the list of publications below.)

In the US, many healthcare providers do refer out to resources such as housing assistance, food banks, support groups, jobs programs, etc… However, most communities don’t yet have formal systems that allow providers to connect their patients with experiences related to arts, culture, and nature.

In other words, current referral practices are missing community assets that could benefit health. CultureRx is an early model seeking to address this gap in resources — and by doing so, to improve health and well-being.

 

Give me the details

(For more, read the free report or the peer-reviewed article.)

  • 12 cultural organizations across Massachusetts, partnered with 20+ healthcare providers

  • Museums, theater, dance, a park system, a zoo, art/music classes, and more… partnered with physicians, mental health therapists, school counselors, and physical therapists

  • In this evaluation, 8 of the 12 organizations collected data from their 2022 participants. We analyzed that data, and also spoke with the cultural organizations and healthcare providers.


A few takeways

(Be sure to check out the list of relevant publications below!)

✔️ For most healthcare providers, this was their first experience referring patients to something that was purely enjoyable—something that supports their patients’ interests, culture, sense of connection in the community, desire for beauty, etc. They saw this as an important addition to their toolkits, and they’d like the program to expand:

“It feels like prescribing beauty in your life,” a physician stated. “I’ve never had a chance to do that, but I feel like that’s kind of what this is.

✔️ We also found that “referring people to arts and culture is good for providers’ health, too.” Providers told us that referring people to arts and nature opportunities had positive effects on their own moods, on their interactions with patients, and on how they felt about their work.

✔️ People who received referrals reported overwhelmingly positive experiences. They felt welcome as participants at the arts and culture organizations, and wanted to return for more. “Overall, evaluation points to the ability for arts and culture engagement to deliver positive outcomes with minimal risks.”

So what’s next?

Although “arts on prescription” is new in the U.S., connecting patients and clients with community resources is not. I’ll be working with my teams and colleagues to ensure that more community assets are included in community referral practices.

[2023 UPDATE: We’ve published the groundbreaking tool: “Arts on Prescription: A Field Guide for US Communities.” This resource is the first “how-to” guide for launching arts on prescription programs in your community.  Learn more and download it for FREE here.]

Art, nature, and cultural experiences are important assets in every community; they can bolster wellbeing, connection, and quality of life. Access to these resources is necessary for advancing community health, health equity, and wellbeing.

In general, this work is a reminder to ask not only, How will we react to suffering? but also, Who has access to opportunities to thrive? And, How will we build a community in which thriving is more possible? This initiative expands our answers to these crucial questions.

So what’s next for you?

If you’d like to see this kind of program in your community, download the Field Guide; it’s designed to support readers in building their own versions of this work.

I also directly help orgs move this concept from idea to action. If you’d like support, reach out about speaking or consulting.

Lastly, check out the publications linked throughout (and below); they provide a wealth of helpful insights and practical recommendations.

“The CultureRx initiative offers a promising addition to current efforts to address social determinants of health. Its focus on arts, culture, and nature can augment traditional referral processes in the U.S. by providing ways to advance well- being and social connection.”

arts + health?

If you’re interested in the broader role of the arts in health, get my free ebook by clicking the cover image (or here).

More publications below.

LIST OF RELEVANT PUBLICATIONS:

Tasha Golden
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