Exploratory Evaluation of a Therapeutic Art Program in an Adult Day Health Center

Authors

  • Stefania Cuomo Northwell Health-Orzac Center for Rehabilitation
  • Lynn Anderson SUNY Cortland
  • Anne Marie Sarich Northwell Health–Orzac Center for Rehabilitation

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18666/TRJ-2020-V54-I3-10181

Keywords:

Adult day health care, APIE, flourishing through leisure, recreational therapy, therapeutic art, therapeutic recreation, well-being

Abstract

Therapeutic recreation services are in greater demand with the increasing aging population. Therapeutic recreation, including therapeutic arts, is often provided in adult day health care programs to provide stimulating, rehabilitative environments that enrich well-being. This evaluation identified the impact an 8-week therapeutic arts program, designed and implemented using the Flourishing through Leisure Model as its framework, had on leisure well-being for 16 members of the adult day health care program. Utilizing pre-test and post-test assessments of the Well-Being Index, there were statistically significant improvements in overall well-being, leisure well-being, cognitive well-being, and spiritual well-being. Despite the limitations of this evaluation, the results suggest that a therapeutic arts program designed around the Flourishing through Leisure Model may improve domains of well-being in the adult day health care setting.

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Author Biographies

Stefania Cuomo, Northwell Health-Orzac Center for Rehabilitation

Stefania Cuomo is a recreational therapist at Northwell Health-Orzac Center for Rehabilitation

Lynn Anderson, SUNY Cortland

Lynn Anderson is distinguished service professor at SUNY Cortland and the director of the Inclusive Recreation Resource Center

Anne Marie Sarich, Northwell Health–Orzac Center for Rehabilitation

Anne Marie Sarich is a recreational therapist, internship supervisor, and director of therapeutic recreation at Northwell Health–Orzac Center for Rehabilitation

Published

2020-08-18

Issue

Section

Practice Perspective