Task 4d

Literature Review

The Baring Foundation- Creative Care Homes

   This was one of the first articles I really studied for this Module, and found it was full of useful ideas, case studies and reports that would help my research into The Arts within care homes. It has also provided me with many other reports and articles on this subject matter. As I work in entertainment within care homes, I feel this will really help develop my skills in this area and give me a clearer understanding of just how important this is within social care.
 
    The authors David Cutler, Des Kelly and Slyvie Silver claim their purpose of the article was to 'celebrate existing good practice in the use of the arts with and for older people in residential care and to inspire more and better work'.(foreword p.1) I feel it is imperative the good work is celebrated as the arts are so often overlooked, particularly within the social sector, so spreading positive feedback can help potentially create more interest and therefore more need for funding.  As artist Annie Abers mentions 'Sometimes we can be given the impression that the arts are only for people who belong to a rather exclusive club,' (p.4) yet this report demonstrates how they can be easily accessed in a variety of ways and have marvellous benefits for the recipients.

Taking part (p.4,5)

This section provided me with some interesting insights and further reading for other articles I will review separately. They all state how the arts benefit people within care and the different reasons for having activities in place.

- 'There is increasing recognition of the benefits for everyone of having the chance to take part more actively in the arts and the impact of participation on our physical and mental health and well-being' (Hayes, J & Povey, S, (2010) The Creative Arts in Dementia Care: practical person-centred approaches and ideas, Jessica Kingsley, London)

- 'Many activities, though not all, take place in groups and bring with them social interaction and a sense of inclusion, countering a common aspect of older age – loneliness, isolation and depression'
'Some arts activities can allow us to express our often hidden identities and in so doing, to challenge what others assume about us'. (Taylor, M, Self-identity and the arts education of disabled young people, (2006) Disability and Society, (20), 7, 763-778).

   I am particularly interested in Taylor's idea of allowing people to express hidden identities. I often go to perform in care homes and find residents happily singing and dancing throughout the show, only to be then told by a career, they are usually very reserved and are hard to communicate with. How does music and art connect with people to have this effect?

   One of the case studies in this article, helps to answer this question, as it focuses on 'Singing for Brain sessions'; a technique run by the Alzheimer's society. (P.11)
The St Monica trust (www.stmomicatrust.org.uk) is a specialist dementia service in Bristol and North Somerset, and uses this technique throughout its care homes.
They have many aims and targets for these sessions, but these few points really stood out to me and my practice.

- 'to improve and maintain the neurological pathways through deeper breathing and gentle movement;(there is ongoing research into the relationship between singing and the area of the brain concerned with speech; there are many anecdotal reports that during singing sessions people with dementia demonstrate improved lucidity and sociability;)'

- 'to lift/prevent depression through the use of elements which surprise, reassure, support, inspire and mediate, reframing a negative life viewpoint into a positive one;'

- 'to express emotions by singing songs that evoke many types of emotion or feelings that might be triggered by them;'

   It has inspired me to look deeper into the actual science behind the connection between singing and speech and the neurological pathways. Also the psychological theories relating music with depression and how it can help.
   The study also mentions using 'well designed song folders to enable residents to see a song on a single page. However I disagree with this being an effective tool, as I have tried this myself and was overall unsuccessful. During my first set of Christmas singalong shows in care and residential homes, I used a large font, clear Carol sheet for the residents to use and read from. I found, in general, they were simply not used and often just discarded on the floor. Residents were happy to sing along with words they already knew and enjoy parts they didn't. I would be interested to interview a few other entertainers and round who do this to see what their feedback is.
   They use props and instruments including 'scarves bubbles and props to add a dimension of storytelling and fun'. This I completely agree with as I always feel it becomes so much more interactive and keeps the residents engaged in another way, so I tend to include props in all my shows to add to the theme of the music.


The Current place of Arts in NCF Care Homes. (P.6)

 A review in August 2011 of the NCF (not for profit care homes in England) States that 82.1% include art activities within their care services. These included:

- 'the singing circle'  for people with dementia
- theatre, dance and music performance
- activities linked to events such as Burns Night, Christmas or themed days.

 My work is directly linked to all these as I include singalong sections in my theatre and music performances, linking them in with festivals and events like Christmas and Easter. I would like to investigate first hand, through interviews and feedback, just how much of an impact these activities have on a daily basis to the residents and their well being.
'It is interesting to note that almost every organisation recorded ‘reminiscence-type’ activities and the majority have regular ‘music and movement’ sessions (in some cases daily) which can improve physical fitness levels, general health and well-being and impart ‘feel-good’ benefits for all involved.' (P.6)

Other Case Studies

   The article features many other case studies, conducted by many organisations set up around the country, all providing something different for the clientele so I turn having different effects and benefits.

- The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution (www.rmbi.org.uk) use 'Sonas therapeutic communication' and 'circle dance in association with Dementia UK. They have 'a variety of entertainers come into the RMBI homes to hold sessions'.

- Ladder to the Moon (www.laddertothemoon.co.uk) focus more upon training staff, using creative and drama techniques to change attitudes and create 'active support between staff' helping them develop a better living environment for the residents, 'shifting the culture of care away from ‘getting tasks done’ to ‘supporting individuals to have the best possible quality of life’.'

- Oxford concert (www.oxfordconcertparty.com) use musical sessions, with aims of 'opening up musical experiences for prisoners, refugees and asylum seekers, people with mental health needs, children and young people in educational settings as well as older people.' They use music, song, dance and poetry which they have said ' brought the participants together and created a very supportive and fun atmosphere, generating visible responses from everyone'. The organisation also uses musical instruments from various cultures to gain 'another dimension of sensory experience from being able to hear and make sound from these musical instruments.'

Each of these studies, I will look into further detail as my course progresses, and will look into contacting some of these organisations to get some feedback about their services.


   In conclusion, I found this article extremely interesting, opening up many other doors of research that I can get stuck into throughout this module. What I found really interesting was the way in which arts not only helps the residents directly, but training staff with art techniques to help them become more effective carers. This is something completely new to me and I lol forward into researching this further. I would also like to develop a greater understanding of the brain activity that happens when people with dementia engage in art related activities.

If you have any feedback about any of the subjects raised in this blog I would love to hear peoples ideas and opinions.