The “Art” of Compassionate Care

Perhaps one of the most important aspects of our Schwartz Center Rounds® program is the voice it gives to caregivers. Rounds serve as an outlet for expression, a forum where healthcare providers can communicate with each other in an incredibly honest and open way about the most personal and human aspects of healthcare. It is at Rounds that providers talk about the difficult patient situations they face, receive support from other clinicians, and gain the insights necessary to become more compassionate caregivers.

At The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), which has been conducting Rounds since 2007, the program’s success has inspired another form of expression: Rounds that highlight how caregivers use creative outlets to build the resilience to thrive in an environment in which they regularly care for seriously ill and traumatized children and their families.

“Surrender” by Felicia Alleyne, RN

The program, called “Arts and Humanities: Building Staff Resilience,” was developed by Elizabeth Steinmiller, a clinical nurse specialist in mental health and Rounds facilitator, and Dr. Wynne Morrison, a critical care physician and co-champion of Rounds, with staff from the hospital’s Child Life, Education, and Creative Arts Therapy Department.  They have delicately and diligently worked to make this annual event a safe place where employees’ artistic expression is embraced and honored.  As Steinmiller notes, “This is not a talent show, but a way of dealing with the stresses of being a caregiver.”

Since its introduction in May of 2008, these creative Rounds have inspired a multitude of presenters, from a trauma nurse who has turned to nude sketching to repair the wounds of caring for broken bodies to a therapist who writes his own music to cope with challenging therapy sessions. The sessions typically attract more than 100 busy clinicians, about the same number who attend more traditional Rounds sessions.

Caregivers are asked to share creative pieces that express their feelings and emotions about their work. According to Steinmiller, “We have included instrumental and vocal musical performances, photographs, paintings and drawings, fabric art, and readings of poetry and prose. Each presenter is expected to comment on how his or her creative work has affected interactions with patients and families. Many presenters have spoken of how their creative work helps them cope with the demands of patient care.”

Photo by respiratory therapist Michael Francis Duff

The program has inspired some clinicians to return to artistic pursuits they had abandoned. Cardiologist Dr. Beth Kaufman had stopped playing the flute when she entered medical school. “Performing music had always been restorative for me and at Rounds, I asked for advice on how to get started again,” she says. “I received concrete suggestions and was welcomed into the artistic circle at CHOP.”  Beth now performs as part of the Baby Blue Sound Collective, a group of her cardiology colleagues that performs to raise money for heart disease.

As one indication of the program’s success, Dr. Stephen Ludwig, a senior physician in general pediatrics at CHOP who shared his own photography at one of the first arts and humanities Rounds, recently provided financial support to the program out of his endowed chair in pediatrics.  This will ensure that the hospital can continue to offer these special sessions in the future.

As one Rounds participant at CHOP wrote, “This is an important reminder to all of us to continue to pursue our creative outlets to ensure a healthy balance in our lives.  These interests allow us to step away from our daily routines, stretch our outlooks, and return to CHOP refreshed and nourished.”

As a caregiver, how do you use artistic expression to build resilience?