Dr. Nick Kouns is introducing a program at Clark Regional to use art therapeutically with patients.Photo by Emily Moseley
For Dr. Nick Kouns, combining art and medicine is like a perfect marriage. Kouns describes his medical career and his interest in the arts, including a previous tenure as president of the Lexington Art League, as “the two great loves of my life.”
Now he hopes to use those two loves to improve the lives of dementia and Alzheimers patients permanently residing at Winchesters Clark Regional Medical Center (CRMC).
“What people think is just pretty artwork is actually not just pretty artwork. It’s a pretty cost-efficient way to help patients,” he said.
The program at CRMC will be modeled after an already-established program called “Meet Me at MoMA,” the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. According to moma.org, “Meet Me at MoMA” allows dementia and Alzheimer’s patients to view artwork in a museum setting, then discuss the pieces with volunteers or caregivers.
The discussions, according to Kouns, stimulate brain activity and help improve cognitive function.
“Artistic programming, when done smartly and expeditiously, can not only make everyone happy, it can improve cognitive therapy and it’s much, much more cost effective,” Kouns said.
In 2004, Kouns helped head an arts in health-care program at Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Center that allowed disabled children to participate in a six-week art camp at the hospital. The Side by Side program pairs each participating child with an artist to create a collaborative piece of art. The children and artists also create their own individual pieces, and physical and occupational therapists are available to help the patients.
“It was one of the most rewarding things I’ve done in my life,” Kouns said. “The response we got from family members was astonishing.”
When LifePoint Hospitals, the parent company of CRMC, opened a new hospital in April 2012, Kouns immediately began working on acquiring a permanent art collection for the facility. Funding was provided by hospital staff and LifePoint.
“We had 100 percent participation in our fundraising,” Kouns said of the hospital physicians.
Programs like Meet Me at MoMA and Side by Side have been established all over the country, and Kouns said research has made it clear there is a definite positive impact from art.
“Color and form and composition actually slows cerebral damage,” Kouns said.
Currently, 13 permanent pieces have been acquired, 11 of which were created by Kentucky artists. One was purchased at auction and has previously been part of a Smithsonian Institute exhibit. Fourteen pieces are on display as part of a rotating collection, but Kouns said he will have acquired 27 permanent pieces by the end of the year and will phase out the rotating portion of the collection.
“These are all very high-quality pieces of artwork,” Kouns said.
The program is slated to begin April 2014.
Although the Meet Me At MoMA program was “the most easily emulated” art and healthcare program Kouns found, he said it is only the beginning of such efforts at CRMC.
Thanks to the donations from the local physicians and LifePoint, Kouns said there will be funds left over after the permanent collection is established.
“I’m overwhelmed and humbled by the physicians at Clark Regional,” Kouns said.
Although definite plans have not been made for future projects, Kouns said he is confident he will be able to continue his work with arts in healthcare.
“This is just the first of many projects that I would like to at least initiate and get going at Clark Regional,” Kouns said.
[gallery ids="224228,224229,224230"]