Arts for Health
The Mississauga Arts Council is excited about the possibilities for an arts for health program of creative health care services that would deliver the proven health benefits for clients of all ages using creative arts experiences while providing stable employment for artists of all practices.
MAC, as a part of an Arts in Health steering committee, has the following Vision, Mission and Goals.
Vision:
Well being for all through creative expression
Mission:
To make the arts an integral part of healthcare protocols
Goals:
1. Building relationships with primary healthcare providers.
2. Identify medical allies and agencies to work with client groups who can benefit from social prescriptions.
3. Create an inventory of arts organizations willing to provide creative experiences for health services.
Arts for Health Resources
MAC wants to make the public aware of the health benefits of the arts. The resources below document real-world examples of Arts for Health in action across Canada and the globe.
Reports
Rewiring our brains to understand how art promotes mental health
Originally published in Mississauga News by John Stewart, April 8, 2021. Christine Long was walking across a parking lot when, “I felt something rip in my brain.” She was in hospital three days while doctors tried to figure out whether her problem stemmed from her multiple sclerosis symptoms. Back at home, she woke up one morning unable to walk, talk […]
For People Who Experience Homelessness, Art Catalyzes Economic Mobility and Rewrites the Narrative
Originally published in Next City by Claire Marie Porter Larry Williams has been surrounded by the arts most of his life. He grew up in Tennessee with parents who both taught music and drama at the college level. The practice room for the black students at the time was in his home, where he says, they housed four pianos. “Music […]
The Case for Music in Times of Loss
Originally published in The New York Times by Chris Skora If we’re going to survive this pandemic we need music, more than ever. There is nothing else that can meet us in our heartbreak, elevate our spirits, move us to laughter and let us dream in the way that music can. I was apprenticed to loss and grief at the […]
Music in the Liminal Space: Part 1 Neurology and Consciousness
Originally Published in Room 217 by Bev Foster I have borne witness to the dying trajectories of three loved ones. It appeared to me that each one was most receptive to music when body systems were shutting down and their spirits were preparing to travel on. That in-between, liminal space can be filled with music based on neurological events taking […]
Some Children Waiting 2 Years for mental health treatment in Brampton and Mississauga: Report
Originally Published in Mississauga News by Steve Cornwell Mental health organization calls for $150M increase to front-line funding Peel Region is a wait times “hot spot” for children and youth mental health services, according to Kim Moran, CEO of Children’s Mental Health Ontario. – Pexels stock image A new report is sounding the alarm about wait times for children and […]
Brain Beat Dance combines dance, storytelling and conversation to stimulate brain health in GTA seniors
Originally published in The Toronto Star by Tony Wong May Wong is leading her group of seniors through an apple-picking excursion. Except she’s not in an orchard, she’s in a brightly lit conference room overlooking a man-made lake in a Scarborough community centre. “Before you pick the apples, wash you hands, wipe both hands,” says Wong, demonstrating by rubbing her […]
Art helps Mississauga man overcome adversity
Originally published in Mississauga News by Marta Marychuck Doctors didn’t think he would survive A Mississauga man has turned a passion for art into a successful creative outlet after battling back from a traumatic brain injury. Abel Mekonnen was only six when was vaccinated for measles, says his sister Chrissy. What nurses didn’t realize was that Abel had the flu […]
Brain Burnout
Originally Published in UVic News by Suzanne Ahearne Cheap, portable technology measures cognitive fatigue What if you could peer inside people’s brains to see what’s going on? This may sound like a sci-fi pipe-dream, but to University of Victoria neuroscientist Olav Krigolson, the brain is his “final frontier” containing the last great mysteries of the human body. From his Theoretical […]
‘Storycare’ should be an essential part of health care
Originally Published in The Star by Dan Yashinsky A white feather floated out of my old parka into the hospital room. The timing was uncanny. I work as the storyteller-in-residence at Baycrest Health Sciences, and was visiting a patient in the palliative care unit. Milton was very frail, and his wife and daughter were keeping vigil at his bedside. Even […]
VIBE Arts brings emerging artists’ work to TTC subway stations
Originally Published in The Star by Dominik Kurek For 28-year-old Nicholas Wannamaker, art is a lifeline. “I do art because I’ve never gotten mental health help, so basically everything I do is me dissecting a part of my soul that’s been fractured, damaged, and it’s basically an exploration and representation of the healing I’m trying to do,” the Lawrence and Warden […]
