WNO welcomes Spire Cardiff Hospital, a leading private healthcare provider in Wales, as our latest Corporate Supporter. They will be supporting our ‘Come and Sing’ sessions in two hospitals over the next year, where we provide a joyful musical experience for ward patients, their families and staff every Friday. This partnership demonstrates the growing importance of using the arts to improve health and wellbeing.
Heather Dob, Hospital Director at Spire Cardiff HospitalThis was first brought to our attention by Spire Consultant Mr Mike Lewis who had seen the dementia program and its benefits at the University Hospital of Wales. We were convinced the project had to benefit patients and, therefore we were delighted to be able to support the project with Mr Mike Lewis at Spire Cardiff, to help as many patients with dementia as possible.
There has been plenty of evidence in recent years to suggest that using arts in healthcare has a positive impact on patient health outcomes. The arts benefit patients by supporting their physical, mental and emotional recovery, relieving anxiety and decreasing the perception of pain. As the largest arts organisation in Wales we have experience of working in this realm and want to make further strides in becoming part of this movement which is being widely embraced by the medical profession.
For the past year, WNO has been working hard behind the scenes delivering ‘Come and Sing’ sessions at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff every Friday afternoon. WNO Vocal Animateur Kate Woolveridge has been a regular on the project, ‘I passionately believe in the power of music to enhance all of our lives and to create a sense of wellbeing and community. I cannot think of a better way to spend my Friday afternoon – it is a total joy.’
During the sessions, we’ve been told by a number of patients’ relatives that WNO has created memories for their loved ones that they will cherish forever. We hope to continue to create a meaningful impact through the next year of the project, providing much needed escapism during challenging moments.
From late September, we will be continuing our partnership with the Cardiff & Vale Health Charity, resuming our work at University Hospital of Wales with sessions in the Trauma and Orthopaedics ward. We are adding a new hospital to our programme, St David’s Hospital in Cardiff. They have brand new wards to care for the elderly patients, where we’ll be performing our sessions with the help of the organisation Mental Health Matters (MHM). Their sole responsibility is for the mental health and wellbeing of the patients; we’ll be working closely with them to deliver the sessions to the patients.
We look forward to taking opera to these two hospitals over the next year, helping to ensure improvement in the health and wellbeing of elderly and long-stay patients, sharing the same values and commitment as Spire Cardiff Hospital. WNO’s hospital programme is also supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery