Combining health, well-being, and creativity can make a big difference in helping older people feel more included, reducing stress, and enhancing their experience in healthcare settings. However, many current creative programmes for older individuals in healthcare lack strong evidence to show that they work. Moreover, these programmes often treat older people as mere observers rather than active participants.Creative Care is an Erasmus+ project that aims to enhance the capacity of professionals working directly with older people in healthcare settings, including hospitals, day-care centres, and residential care homes, to provide art programmes and activities for older persons, based on an intergenerational and participatory approach.

 

 

Our Goals

 

• Create custom educational tools for Vocational Education & Training (VET) on designing intergenerational and participatory art programs.
• Introduce evidence-based socially engaged art practices into healthcare programs for older individuals.
• Improve VET trainers’ understanding and capacity to offer learning opportunities for professionals working with older individuals.
• Promote awareness among professionals about the benefits of socially engaged art programs for older people in healthcare settings.

 

About Us

The Creative Care Project

Creative Care intends to explore the potential of designing art programmes for older persons in healthcare settings by using socially engaged, inclusive and participatory art processes and practices based on the intergenerational learning approach. The project aims to develop and provide relevant vocational education and training (VET) material and tools in the framework of continuous VET for professionals aiming to enhance their work-based skills. It focuses on intergenerational learning and communication in order to ensure that the offered art programmes and activities are relevant for older people and do not trigger traumatic experiences and/or misunderstandings.

 

Our Goals

• To develop a set of attractive, innovative & tailor-made VET resources and tools on intergenerational and participatory art programmes design;
• To introduce socially engaged and participatory art practices as an evidence-based approach in the context of creative/ art programmes for older persons in healthcare settings;
• To enhance the knowledge of VET trainers and providers on the topic and capacity of providing relevant learning/awareness opportunities to professionals working with older people;
• To stimulate interest and raise awareness of professionals and organisations on the importance and benefits of socially engaged art programmes for older people in health care settings.

 

The project is funded with support from the European Commission under the Erasmus+ Programme and has a duration of 24 months (01/11/2023-31/10/2025).

 

Results & Outputs

 

• Good Practice Guide & Recommendations for VET Providers

The mapping of learning mismatches is used to develop recommendations for VET providers with proposed relevant skills for professionals, including an outline for contents and training methodologies for VET education in the field of creative arts programmes for older persons in healthcare settings. The recommendations seek to overcome the challenges and address the learning needs of professionals in an efficient manner, and increase the quality of the offered VET programmes in the field of creative arts programmes for older persons in healthcare settings.

Good practices in the fields of intergenerational approach and socially engaged participatory arts practices are also identified to accompany the set of recommendations. Both results are transformed into one electronic brochure the “Good Practice Guide and Recommendations for VET providers” available in English, Greek, Romanian, and German.

 

• Creative Care training resources

The training resources for VET providers include relevant and easy-to-digest information on the intergenerational approach and the design and implementation of participatory art programmes for older persons in the context of healthcare settings. The training resources aim to equip VET providers with methodologies, tools and skills in order to actively respond to the needs of professionals working directly with older people.These include a Trainers Handbook on Intergenerational Arts Programme Design, including modules & slides on the:

– Value of performing arts for older persons in health care settings;

– Introduction to concepts, benefits, challenges, opportunities;

– Intergenerational approach and programme design;

– Design and implementation of art programmes;

– Socially engaged and participatory art practices;

– Funding opportunities and access.

 

The resources are available in English, Greek, Romanian, and German.

 

• Creative Care Online toolbox

The online toolbox offers the developed training resources in an accessible and user-friendly manner.An online comprehensive educational platform is available in English, Greek, Romanian and German, acting as the project’s main educational resource. It includes e-learning units based on the Trainers Handbook on Intergenerational Arts Programme Design that are available in English with subtitles in Greek, Romanian and German.Online ‘train the trainer’ seminars in Greece, Romania and Austria, addressed to VET providers and trainers also make use of the material and resources.

 

Partners

Fundaţia de Sprijin Comunitar, Romania

Fundaţia de Sprijin Comunitar (FSC) is a non-profit Romanian organisation involved in the development of services, legislation and policies for senior people since 1997. FSC’s vision is to create a world where human rights are respected and people have access to adequate, high-quality services provided by professionals in their own community. With a team of 150 employees and 250 volunteers, FSC serves yearly over 5,000 people by providing medical, social and educational services to older people affected by lack of mobility, illness, and loneliness; and children and families affected by social deprivation, poverty, neglect,etc.FSC coordinates a centre for volunteerism that engage over 250 young people each year and provides accredited training to adults on several topics such as: home care for older people, combined arts work, project management, etc.FSC, together with other NGOs from Romania introduced “home care” in the national classification of jobs together with the standards of training and the training curriculum. FSC is an accredited trainer in the field and has been training over 1,000 people in this field throughout the years.

 

KMOP Policy Center, Belgium

KMOP is one of oldest civil society organisations in Greece with 45 years of experience in direct provision of social services and implementation of social initiatives in supporting vulnerable individuals.
KMOP studies and analyses pressing societal challenges in order to understand society, proposes innovative interventions, educates, and develops the know-how to address social issues based on fairness, innovation, sustainability and balanced development. It actively supports individuals and communities through the direct provision of social services and educational opportunities, the implementation of innovative initiatives, research and impactful policy design.KMOP Policy Center was established by KMOP, in 2020, with the aim to conduct in-depth research, produce impactful, evidence-based policies, and advocate on social issues. Capitalising on KMOP’s long experience in the provision of social services, KMOP Policy Center analyses, designs, and recommends policies that promote social welfare, individual well-being and equal opportunities, bringing real change for individuals and communities. In particular, our mission is to provide comprehensive insights on designing policies with a positive social impact.

 

ARTIT, Greece

Artit is a Software as a Service (SaaS) arts & culture organisation founded in 2021 upon the belief that art is a powerful educational tool that facilitates self-expression and triggers change. It uses arts as a means to educate and raise awareness on today’s global challenges, on issues around sustainability, social inclusion, entrepreneurship, as well asmental health, creativity and wellbeing. In this spirit, transnational collaborative partnerships are a key way that Artit stays socially engaged and practices its commitment to inclusive, thriving societies.

Artit has adopted a multi-stakeholder partnerships approach, working with organisations in the public and private sectors, as well as with creators around the globe, to design and implement future proof and creative actions that are essential to drive social change, for a more inclusive, creative, and sustainable world. To do so, it designs and implements innovative projects at both national and international level. It is currently involved in 10 EU projects, having created a digital platform of global reach with artists around the globe.

 

Asociaţia Habilitas, Romania

Habilitas Association was created in 2007 with the aim to contribute to the development of adult and professional education. Habilitas is continuously developing training programmes for elderly home care workers, according tο their identified needs (improving practice, communications skills, improvement of personal skills, respecting elderly rights, identifying and preventing elder abuse) and works on projects focused on the elderly involvement in the community.Habilitas is member of the international network working on abuse INPEA (International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse) and is a founding member of the national network SenioriNET, a network of 58 NGOs that are home care services providers for older persons. Habilitas has developed strong collaboration relations with public authorities, care providers, NGOs, trade unions, and universities. Habilitas is a member of AGE PLATFORM EUROPE since 2022.

Habilitas has a specific expertise in the ageing field, including providing educational opportunities or resources for older people, promoting active ageing and social inclusion of seniors, combating elder abuse and violation of their rights.

 

ÖJAB – Österreichische Jungarbeiter Bewegung, Austria

ÖJAB (Österreichische Jungarbeiterbewegung / Austrian Young Workers Movement) is a non-profit organisation that provides students and other young people with a home near their places of education, offers inpatient and mobile care, and pursues projects in the fields of education, integration, refugee relief, and development cooperation.

As one of Austria´s largest residence operators, ÖJAB offers living quarters for 4,600 individuals at 23 dormitories for students and other young people, two intergenerational dormitories, an intercultural dormitory, and three senior citizen residences as well as nursing homes for the elderly. Since 2020, ÖJAB is running a nursing school where nursing assistants are trained in a one-year fulltime course. Seniors at ÖJAB facilities receive warm-hearted and professional care and also enjoy intergenerational encounters.
Additionally, each year ÖJAB support 2,000 young people and adults (for the most part from socially underprivileged backgrounds) in acquiring education as well as training that qualifies them for the job market. ÖJAB also participates in Europe-wide educational projects.

 

CreativeCare project Website:https://www.creativecare-project.eu/