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The aesthetic and cultural interests of patients attending an acute hospital – a phenomenological study
Author(s) -
Moss Hilary,
O'Neill Desmond
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of advanced nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.948
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1365-2648
pISSN - 0309-2402
DOI - 10.1111/jan.12175
Subject(s) - the arts , rehabilitation hospital , medicine , phenomenology (philosophy) , rehabilitation , interpretative phenomenological analysis , perception , psychology , nursing , aesthetics , qualitative research , sociology , visual arts , physical therapy , social science , art , philosophy , epistemology , neuroscience
Aim To describe the aesthetic and cultural pursuits of older patients in hospital. Background Although there is much discussion of the importance of arts – used in this paper to refer to all art forms, as currently listed by the Arts Council of Ireland www.artscouncil.ie – in health, little is known about the salience of aesthetic and cultural pursuits of hospital patients. Design A qualitative, hermeneutic phenomenological study examined artistic and cultural interests and experiences of older hospital patients and their perceptions of aesthetics of hospital. Methods A phenomenological study was carried out in 2011, using purposeful sampling with 20 inpatients aged over 65. Patients were selected from the geriatric medicine day hospital of a university teaching hospital, 10 had experience of the hospital arts programme. Results Seven themes identified: loss and the impact of illness on leisure activities; patients' interests and passions; a lack of expectation of arts in hospital; the positive impact of arts in hospital for those who had experienced them; varying preference between receptive and participative arts activity according to phase of illness; aesthetic aspects of the hospital experience; recommendations for changes to improve arts in hospital. Conclusions Aesthetic and cultural interests are important in the lives of older patients admitted to hospital. Illness can create barriers to artistic engagement. Participation in arts activities may be more important during recovery and rehabilitation, with receptive arts being more popular during the acute phase of illness in hospital. Further research recommended on the role of the aesthetic environment for patients' health and well‐being as well as receptive arts in hospital.