Podium Session
Zaeem Lone, BA
Project Coordinator
Johns Hopkins University
Presentation Authors: Zaeem Lone*, Hijab Khan, Morgan Steele, Jenna Bizovi, Ahmed S. Elsayed, Naif A. Aldhaam, Ahmed A. Hussein, Wenyan Ji, Kris Attwood, Russell Davidson, Helen Cappuccino, Joe Lin-Hill, Khurshid A. Guru, Buffalo, NY
Introduction: To our knowledge, none of the studies published in the literature objectively measure the effect of art therapy on outcomes and convalescence of cancer patients. We sought to investigate the effect of exposure to art during the perioperative period for patients undergoing inpatient oncological surgical procedures utilizing a randomized control trial.
Methods: This randomized control trial compares the postoperative course of patients who are exposed to art versus those who are not. 51 patients have been randomized into 2 arms (standard of care or exposure to art gallery). All consented patients completed a survey assessing baseline art knowledge and completed 4 validated questionnaires that assess mental well-being throughout the enrollment. The 4 questionnaires are The Pain Rating Scale (Pain), Herth Hope Index (Hope), The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Adults (Anxiety), and the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (Mental Wellbeing). The art gallery group attended sessions (minimum of 1 session for 15 minutes) at the Roswell Park art gallery developed in collaboration with the Albright Knox Art Gallery. Both groups then completed the surveys. A mixed model analysis adjusted for baseline scores was run comparing the scores on the various surveys.
Results: Of the 51 preliminary patients enrolled, 4 were excluded. There were 22 patients in the gallery group and 25 in the standard of care. There was no statistically significant difference in the baseline art knowledge between the two groups as both groups reported attending art galleries and other cultural institutions 2 + 1 times a year and reported having low passion and knowledge about art. Patients in the art gallery group had a statistically significant decrease on the Anxiety Inventory (-5.1 + 1.9, p=0.0135). The art gallery group had an increase on the Well-being Scale that neared statistical significance (4.0+2.0, p=0.0534) and also experienced an increase on the Hope Index (2.5 + 1.2, p=0.06). There was no statistically significant difference in pain scores.
Conclusions: This is the first randomized clinical trial to measure the effect of art therapy on the postoperative recovery process. Our initial data reveals that art therapy reduces the level of anxiety that patients experience and has a beneficial effect on the mental well-being of patients.
Source of Funding: Roswell Park Alliance Foundation
