Latest news with #JulieCourcierDelafontaine
South China Morning Post
27-03-2025
- Health
- South China Morning Post
How art therapy prescriptions for free museum visits help stressed and sick in Swiss town
The world's woes got you down? Feeling burnt out at work? Need a little something extra to fight illness or prep for surgery? The Swiss town of Neuchâtel is offering its residents a novel medical option: expose yourself to art and get a doctor's note to do it for free. Advertisement Under a new two-year pilot project, local and regional authorities are covering the costs of 'museum prescriptions' issued by doctors who believe their patients could benefit from visits to any of the town's four museums as part of their treatment. The project is based on a 2019 World Health Organization report that found the arts can boost mental health , reduce the impact of trauma, and lower the risk of cognitive decline, frailty and 'premature mortality', among other upsides. Art can help relax the mind – as a sort of preventive medicine – and visits to museums require getting up and out of the house with physical activity like walking and standing for long periods. Feather headdresses on display at the Ethnographic Museum of Neuchâtel, Switzerland. Photo: Wikipedia Neuchâtel council member Julie Courcier Delafontaine said the Covid crisis also played a role in the programme's genesis.
Los Angeles Times
24-03-2025
- Health
- Los Angeles Times
Stressed? Sick? Swiss town lets doctors prescribe museum visits as art therapy for patients
NEUCHATEL, Switzerland — The world's woes got you down? Feeling burnout at work? Need a little something extra to fight illness or prep for surgery? The Swiss town of Neuchatel is offering its residents a novel medical option: Expose yourself to art and get a doctor's note to do it for free. Under a new two-year pilot project, local and regional authorities are covering the costs of 'museum prescriptions' issued by doctors who believe their patients could benefit from visits to any of the town's four museums as part of their treatment. The project is based on a 2019 World Health Organization report that found the arts can boost mental health, reduce the impact of trauma and lower the risk of cognitive decline, frailty and 'premature mortality,' among other upsides. Art can help relax the mind — as a sort of preventative medicine — and visits to museums require getting up and out of the house with physical activity such as walking and standing for long periods. Neuchatel council member Julie Courcier Delafontaine said the COVID-19 crisis also played a role in the program's genesis. 'With the closure of cultural sites [during coronavirus lockdowns], people realized just how much we need them to feel better.' She said so far some 500 prescriptions have been distributed to doctors around town and the program costs 'very little.' Ten thousand Swiss francs (about $11,300) have been budgeted for it. If successful, local officials could expand the program to other artistic activities such as theater or dance, Courcier Delafontaine said. The Swiss national healthcare system doesn't cover 'culture as a means of therapy,' but she hopes it might one day, if the results are positive enough. Marianne de Reynier Nevsky, the cultural mediation manager in the town of 46,000 who helped devise the program, said it built on a similar idea rolled out at the Fine Arts Museum in Montreal, Canada, in 2019. She said many types of patients could benefit. 'It could be a person with depression, a person who has trouble walking, a person with a chronic illness,' she said near a display of a feather headdress from Papua New Guinea at the Ethnographic Museum of Neuchatel, a converted former villa that overlooks Lake Neuchatel. Part of the idea is to get recalcitrant patients out of the house and walking more. Dr. Marc-Olivier Sauvain, head of surgery at the Neuchatel Hospital Network, said he had already prescribed museum visits to two patients to help them get in better shape before a planned operation. He said a wider rollout is planned once a control group is set up. For his practice, the focus will be on patients who admit that they've lost the habit of going out. He wants them to get moving. 'It's wishful thinking to think that telling them to go walk or go for a stroll to improve their fitness level before surgery' will work, Sauvain said on a video call Saturday, wearing blue scrubs. 'I think that these patients will fully benefit from museum prescriptions. We'll give them a chance to get physical and intellectual exercise.' 'And as a doctor, it's really nice to prescribe museum visits rather than medicines or tests that patients don't enjoy,' he added. 'To tell them 'It's a medical order that instructs you to go visit one of our nice city museums.'' Some museum-goers see the upsides too. 'I think it's a great idea,' said Carla Fragniere Filliger, a poet and retired teacher, during a visit to the ethnography museum. 'There should be prescriptions for all the museums in the world!' Keaten writes for the Associated Press.
Euronews
24-03-2025
- Health
- Euronews
Pills or paintings? Swiss town lets doctors prescribe free museum visits as art therapy
ADVERTISEMENT Stressed? Feeling run down? In need of a little pick-me-up? Well, if you're in the Swiss town of Neuchâtel, you might just get a doctor's note to visit a museum — for free. In a novel pilot project launched by local and regional authorities, doctors can now prescribe "museum visits" as part of a treatment plan. This initiative, which covers the cost of entry to any of the town's four museums, aims to boost mental health and provide some cultural respite for patients. The idea isn't just about enjoying art ; it's backed by science. A 2019 World Health Organization report highlighted the numerous mental health benefits of engaging with the arts. From reducing the impact of trauma to slowing cognitive decline, art therapy has been shown to have a positive impact on overall well-being. 'Art can help relax the mind, almost like preventative medicine,' said Julie Courcier Delafontaine, a Neuchâtel council member. 'People realised during the Covid crisis , when cultural sites were closed, just how much we need these spaces to feel better.' The Musée d'art et d'histoire in Neuchâtel Martouf / CC licence Since launching, the programme has distributed around 500 prescriptions, with only a modest budget of 10,000 Swiss francs (roughly €10,460). If successful, local officials are considering expanding it to include other cultural activities like theatre or dance. Though the Swiss national health system currently doesn't cover ' culture as therapy ,' Courcier Delafontaine hopes it might in the future. Marianne de Reynier Nevsky, the cultural mediation manager in Neuchâtel, was instrumental in creating the programme, drawing inspiration from a similar initiative launched in Montreal in 2019. She believes a wide range of patients could benefit, from those suffering depression to those with chronic illnesses or mobility issues. 'It could be a person with depression, a person who has trouble walking, a person with a chronic illness,' Nevsky explained. The key is encouraging patients to get out of the house, walk, and engage with their surroundings — even if it's just for an hour in a museum. Dr. Marc-Olivier Sauvain, head of surgery at the Neuchâtel Hospital Network, has already prescribed museum visits to patients. For those preparing for surgery, it's an opportunity to get fit and active before going under the knife. He believes a more widespread rollout will help get more patients moving. 'I think these patients will fully benefit from museum prescriptions,' Sauvain said. 'It's a chance to get both physical and intellectual exercise.' And it's not just the doctors who are excited. Carla Fragniere Filliger, a retired teacher and poet, was all for the idea during a recent visit to the Ethnographic Museum. 'I think it's a great idea,' she said. 'There should be prescriptions for all the museums in the world!'
Arab News
24-03-2025
- Health
- Arab News
Stressed? Sick? Swiss town lets doctors prescribe free museum visits as art therapy for patients
NEUCHATEL, Switzerland: The world's woes got you down? Feeling burnout at work? Need a little something extra to fight illness or prep for surgery? The Swiss town of Neuchâtel is offering its residents a novel medical option: Expose yourself to art and get a doctor's note to do it for free. Under a new two-year pilot project, local and regional authorities are covering the costs of 'museum prescriptions' issued by doctors who believe their patients could benefit from visits to any of the town's four museums as part of their treatment. The project is based on a 2019 World Health Organization report that found the arts can boost mental health, reduce the impact of trauma and lower the risk of cognitive decline, frailty and 'premature mortality,' among other upsides. Art can help relax the mind — as a sort of preventative medicine — and visits to museums require getting up and out of the house with physical activity like walking and standing for long periods. Neuchatel council member Julie Courcier Delafontaine said the COVID crisis also played a role in the program's genesis. 'With the closure of cultural sites (during coronavirus lockdowns), people realized just how much we need them to feel better.' She said so far some 500 prescriptions have been distributed to doctors around town and the program costs 'very little.' Ten thousand Swiss francs (about $11,300) have been budgeted for it. If successful, local officials could expand the program to other artistic activities like theater or dance, Courcier Delafontaine said. The Swiss national health care system doesn't cover 'culture as a means of therapy,' but she hopes it might one day, if the results are positive enough. Marianne de Reynier Nevsky, the cultural mediation manager in the town of 46,000 who helped devise the program, said it built on a similar idea rolled out at the Fine Arts Museum in Montreal, Canada, in 2019. She said many types of patients could benefit. 'It could be a person with depression, a person who has trouble walking, a person with a chronic illness,' she said near a display of a feather headdress from Papua New Guinea at the Ethnographic Museum of Neuchatel, a converted former villa that overlooks Late Neuchatel. Part of the idea is to get recalcitrant patients out of the house and walking more. Dr. Marc-Olivier Sauvain, head of surgery at the Neuchatel Hospital Network, said he had already prescribed museum visits to two patients to help them get in better shape before a planned operation. He said a wider rollout is planned once a control group is set up. For his practice, the focus will be on patients who admit that they've lost the habit of going out. He wants them to get moving. 'It's wishful thinking to think that telling them to go walk or go for a stroll to improve their fitness level before surgery' will work, Sauvain said on a video call Saturday, wearing blue scrubs. 'I think that these patients will fully benefit from museum prescriptions. We'll give them a chance to get physical and intellectual exercise.' 'And as a doctor, it's really nice to prescribe museum visits rather than medicines or tests that patients don't enjoy,' he added. 'To tell them 'It's a medical order that instructs you to go visit one of our nice city museums.'' Some museum-goers see the upsides too. 'I think it's a great idea,' said Carla Fragniere Filliger, a poet and retired teacher, during a visit to the ethnography museum. 'There should be prescriptions for all the museums in the world!'
The Independent
23-03-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Stressed? Sick? Swiss town lets doctors prescribe free museum visits as art therapy for patients
The world's woes got you down? Feeling burnout at work? Need a little something extra to fight illness or prep for surgery? The Swiss town of Neuchâtel is offering its residents a novel medical option: Expose yourself to art and get a doctor's note to do it for free. Under a new two-year pilot project, local and regional authorities are covering the costs of 'museum prescriptions' issued by doctors who believe their patients could benefit from visits to any of the town's four museums as part of their treatment. The project is based on a 2019 World Health Organization report that found the arts can boost mental health, reduce the impact of trauma and lower the risk of cognitive decline, frailty and 'premature mortality,' among other upsides. Art can help relax the mind — as a sort of preventative medicine — and visits to museums require getting up and out of the house with physical activity like walking and standing for long periods. Neuchatel council member Julie Courcier Delafontaine said the COVID crisis also played a role in the program's genesis. 'With the closure of cultural sites (during coronavirus lockdowns), people realized just how much we need them to feel better.' She said so far some 500 prescriptions have been distributed to doctors around town and the program costs 'very little." Ten thousand Swiss francs (about $11,300) have been budgeted for it. If successful, local officials could expand the program to other artistic activities like theater or dance, Courcier Delafontaine said. The Swiss national health care system doesn't cover 'culture as a means of therapy,' but she hopes it might one day, if the results are positive enough. Marianne de Reynier Nevsky, the cultural mediation manager in the town of 46,000 who helped devise the program, said it built on a similar idea rolled out at the Fine Arts Museum in Montreal, Canada, in 2019. She said many types of patients could benefit. 'It could be a person with depression, a person who has trouble walking, a person with a chronic illness,' she said near a display of a feather headdress from Papua New Guinea at the Ethnographic Museum of Neuchatel, a converted former villa that overlooks Late Neuchatel. Part of the idea is to get recalcitrant patients out of the house and walking more. Dr. Marc-Olivier Sauvain, head of surgery at the Neuchatel Hospital Network, said he had already prescribed museum visits to two patients to help them get in better shape before a planned operation. He said a wider rollout is planned once a control group is set up. For his practice, the focus will be on patients who admit that they've lost the habit of going out. He wants them to get moving. 'It's wishful thinking to think that telling them to go walk or go for a stroll to improve their fitness level before surgery' will work, Sauvain said on a video call Saturday, wearing blue scrubs. 'I think that these patients will fully benefit from museum prescriptions. We'll give them a chance to get physical and intellectual exercise.' 'And as a doctor, it's really nice to prescribe museum visits rather than medicines or tests that patients don't enjoy,' he added. 'To tell them 'It's a medical order that instructs you to go visit one of our nice city museums.'' Some museum-goers see the upsides too. 'I think it's a great idea,' said Carla Fragniere Filliger, a poet and retired teacher, during a visit to the ethnography museum. 'There should be prescriptions for all the museums in the world!'
