The benefits of music and arts for patients in Tallaght Hospital

The benefits of music and arts for patients in Tallaght Hospital

A landmark study published this week in the UK found that prescribing art activities for patients could lead to significant improvements in their health and their wellbeing.

Tallaght Hospital is currently growing the number of musicians volunteering with patients, and this week RTE’s Louise Byrne visited the hospital to hear from those providing the service and from patients in the Age Related Unit.

Speaking with Louise, musician Clara Rose Monahan explained some of the benefits of the project for those in the hospital.

She said: “The main goal is that while people are waiting for their appointments it’s quite a sterile environment, they may not know eachother, there is a bit of anxiety around.

“I set the session up to give people that sense that they can interact with eachother, they can have a bit of fun, they might have some reminiscence about older times, and it just sort of acts as a glue for people.

“Music as we know is culturally so important for that, it gets their brain going and it gets them connected, and I think that is what it is all about.

According to Consultant Geriatrician Professor Desmond O’Neill, those in a hospital or healthcare environment can often feel removed from their daily comforts, and music and arts can help to reconnect them with the supports they feel at home.

He said: “When you get sick or when you come to a healthcare environment you may be removed from your usual artistic aesthetic supports and there is very good evidence that if you’re removed the sort of things that make us all hum and buzz as human beings, such as art and music, your recovery slows down and your overall status disimproves.”

You can listen to the full radio piece via the link above, and listen out for Tallaght’s Carmel Clarke at the end who steals the show with her rendition of Barbra Streisand’s ‘The Way We Were’.

Feature picture credit: Tommy Walsh Medical Photography Tallaght Hospital.

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