"Operation PaintFest" Brings Comfort and Hope to Hospitalized Children
Cincinnati -- The imaginations of hospitalized kids at Cincinnati Children's will soar on June 20 during Operation PaintFest: Creating Brighter Children's Hospitals. Walls and ceilings, traditionally unadorned, will now bear the artistic signature of youngsters who are helping paint canvases and mobiles - rich with a butterfly, tropical fish and exotic animal palette of colors. Sponsored by The Foundation for Hospital Art in partnership with Pfizer Pediatric Health, this national program is being offered to children's hospitals throughout the country.
"From the perspective of a child, hospitals can feel like infinite corridors and rooms of sterility - an uninviting whitewash of mazes," explained John Feight, Executive Director, The Foundation for Hospital Art. "However, rooms that invite kids to feel like they just opened a brand new jar of paint transport them from the frightening reality of illness to the welcome respite of fantasy."
The Healing Power of Art
Evidence to support the positive correlation between the process of healing and the power of art is mounting. In fact, as recently as May 1999, The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) published "The Arts of Healing" (vol. 281, no.19, pp.1779-1781). This essay showed that psychologically appropriate art substantially affects such patient outcomes as high blood pressure, anxiety, intake of pain medication, and length of hospital stay.
In particular, representational nature art was shown to have a beneficial effect on patients experiencing stress and anxiety. The goal of "Operation PaintFest" is to provide similar therapeutic benefits for children's hospitals throughout the country.
"At Cincinnati Children's, we applaud the value of art in the hospital setting and strive to create an atmosphere that complements the physical and emotional care we provide to the children we serve," said Sharon McLeod, Director of Child Life. "'Operation PaintFest' gives us the opportunity to invite patients and families to play a vital role in creating an inspirational new backdrop that will bring comfort to them and equally as important, to the children and families who will come to Children's in the months and years to come."
"Operation PaintFest": How It Works
Working side-by-side with their families, medical team and volunteers, patients at Cincinnati Children's will bring nature to life by using the pre-drawn and color-coded mobiles and canvas outlines created by The Foundation for Hospital Art. Once completed, the burst of color painted from the rainbow of butterflies, unexpected texture of tropical fish and discovery of animals happily gazing from the haven of forests, will be permanently displayed in patient treatment rooms throughout the hospital and at selected Children's suburban outpatient locations.
"As a pediatrician, I certainly understand the trepidation children experience in the hospital setting and wholeheartedly believe art is a comforting refuge for kids who find themselves in unfamiliar surroundings," said Randall Kaye, M.D., Pfizer Pediatric Health. "Pfizer is proud to partner with The Foundation for Hospital Art and honored to have so many of the company's employees embrace the real meaning of volunteerism by trading their business attire for art smocks in communities across the country - side-by-side with the young patients to whom we are dedicated."
About the Sponsors
The Foundation for Hospital Art (www.hospitalart.com) is a non-profit organization dedicated to comforting people who suffer in hospitals by softening the hard walls and ceilings that surround them during their illness with warm, colorful murals with the help of volunteers worldwide.
As a global leader in health care, Pfizer (www.pfizer.com) works on the leading edge of medical discovery, searching for innovative health care solutions that help adults and children lead healthier lives. Pfizer's work has resulted in medicines that treat some of childhood's most common infections and allergies. In partnership with healthcare professionals, Pfizer Pediatric Health is dedicated to helping America's children gain better access to the high-quality care they deserve.
Child Life at Cincinnati Children's is one of only a few child life programs in the country. This unique department of dedicated individuals focuses on promoting optimal growth and development in children, reducing the stress of health care experiences, providing support and education to children and their families and advocating for psychosocial care in pediatrics.
Contact Information
Amy Caruso (
amy.caruso@chmcc.org), 513-636-5637
