Last Updated on: 22nd November 2023, 06:27 am
Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has installed artwork from the Paintings in Hospitals collection at its Outpatients department as part of its Healing Arts programme. The programme aims to introduce more visual art, music, and theatre into the hospitals and to improve architecture and green space across the Trust.
The installation was championed by Dr Peter Wilkinson, Consultant Cardiologist, who has been at Ashford and St Peter’s for over 35 years. Dr Wilkinson, a keen advocate of creating a healing atmosphere in the hospital, said: “My informal link with Paintings in Hospitals started many years ago (I suspect over 30) when I was a relatively new consultant based in those days just at Ashford Hospital. It’s wonderful to have a partnership with Paintings in Hospitals and to see this new installation of art in our Outpatients department, for all to enjoy”.
Sandra Bruce-Gordon, Chief Executive of Paintings in Hospitals, said: “Attending a hospital as a patient or a relative can be a stressful experience and both art and nature, can sooth a troubled mind. Staff too can benefit from art in a healthcare environment, both as observers and by creating art. I’m delighted to see this installation in what happens to be my local hospital. Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals has enjoyed a fruitful partnership with Paintings in Hospitals over many years, to the benefit of all.”
The presence of nature, landscapes, and art in all forms in healthcare settings is thought to bring a number of benefits, aid recovery, help to reduce the length of stay for patients and positively impact the wellbeing of staff, patients and visitors.
Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, established in 1998 from the merger of Ashford and St. Peter’s Hospitals, serves a population of more than 410,000 people living in the boroughs of Runnymede, Spelthorne, Woking and parts of Elmbridge, Hounslow, Surrey Heath and beyond. The Trust employs around 4,400 individual members of staff and has enjoyed a fruitful partnership with Paintings in Hospitals, a national charity that uses Visual Art for health and wellbeing, for many years.
Paintings in Hospitals holds the UK’s only national art collection specifically assembled for the purpose, with over 3,800 artworks from well-known artists such as Antony Gormley, Bridget Riley, Andy Warhol, Elizabeth Blackadder, Yinka Shonibare and Jake and Dinos Chapman.
Dr Peter Wilkinson said: “It’s wonderful to have a partnership with Paintings in Hospitals and to see this new installation of art in our Outpatients department, for all to enjoy”. Sandra Bruce-Gordon added: “I’m delighted to see this installation in what happens to be my local hospital”.
Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has installed artwork from the Paintings in Hospitals collection as part of its Healing Arts programme. The installation was championed by Dr Peter Wilkinson, Consultant Cardiologist, who has been at the hospital for over 35 years. It is thought that the presence of nature, landscapes, and art in all forms in healthcare settings can bring a number of benefits, aid recovery, help to reduce the length of stay for patients and positively impact the wellbeing of staff, patients, and visitors.
The partnership between Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Paintings in Hospitals is thought to have greatly benefitted those in the local area. Paintings in Hospitals holds the UK’s only national art collection specifically assembled for the purpose, with over 3,800 artworks from well-known artists.
Dr Peter Wilkinson said: “It’s wonderful to have a partnership with Paintings in Hospitals and to see this new installation of art in our Outpatients department, for all to enjoy”. Sandra Bruce-Gordon, Chief Executive of Paintings in Hospitals, said: “I’m delighted to see this installation in what happens to be my local hospital”.
