Art Appreciation Program Enhances Quality of Life for Residents at Christian Health Care Center

The Longview Assisted Living Residence and The Courtyard at Longview, a specialized residence for individuals with early-stage memory impairment, at Christian Health Care Center in Wyckoff enjoy a weekly Art Appreciation Program. Classes consist of artist biographies and experimentation in the artists’ likeliness
with various mediums. The program was the brainchild of Kathe Carrero,
Courtyard Activities Coordinator. Ms. Carrero, an art-therapy major with a
passion for art, started the program nearly three years ago when she joined the
Longview staff. Her goal was to use art as a therapeutic activity. Ms. Carrero
conducts the program for Courtyard residents on a weekly basis and Cheryl Wolf,
ADC, Longview/Courtyard Activities Director, leads the program for Longview
residents on a bi-monthly basis, with assistance from Ms. Carrero.

The classes have covered many artists, including Michelangelo, Matisse, Jackson
Pollack, Georgia O’Keefe, Grandma Moses, Vincent Van Gogh, Edgar Degas, Andy
Warhol, and Norman Rockwell. And likewise, part of the process is reviewing
their works, their process, and experimenting with various mediums, such as
acrylic paint, watercolors, pastels, oil pastels, collage, paper mache, button
art, mobiles, and string art.

Staff prides itself on providing services, amenities, and surroundings that
complement and enhance the quality of life for our senior residents, and the
Art Appreciation Program is a good example of this. It provides a holistic approach to health care, and the response to the program has been overwhelmingly positive. This program truly involves staff at all levels. Nurses and NursingAssistants often participate and see it as a valuable addition to providing
quality care.

The benefits of the Art Appreciation Program are numerous. Often, residents who
have memory impairment also have trouble with word-finding and communicating. During this activity, memories are often triggered, through the project itself, or by discussions throughout the room. During the program, staff discovers past history and facts that are often helpful in providing residents’ care. In addition, the program gives residents a sense of accomplishment, a sense of
well-being, the opportunity to work as a team, and an active way to express
themselves. It also provides full sensory stimulation, both visual and tactile.
The residents enjoy the smell of paint and feel of the clay. They also take
pride in the fact that their art is displayed in an open walkthrough within the
Courtyard unit that is now aptly named the Breezeway Gallery.

Christian Health Care Center provides a broad continuum of high-quality,
compassionate care, offering superior mental-health, elder-care, residential
living and rehabilitation services. As a non-profit organization, we deliver
care to our community based upon the Christian principles on which we were
founded more than a century ago.