Music & Healing

Music & Healing

The success of your arts in healing program depends on properly trained musicians and artists, and the creation of community in the healthcare setting. Cathy DeWitt, UF Health/Shands Musician in Residence since 1995 and national consultant in arts and health, offers specific workshops and residencies to help you successfully experience and share the healing power of music in your facility. Her programs are user-friendly and designed to produce results right away.

In Cathy’s training programs you will learn to:

        • Screen, train, and organize artists
        • Choose the right music and instruments for different situations
        • Establish a sense of trust from administrators, nurses, doctors and staff
        • Create community partners for increasing resources & public awareness
        • Utilize successful fundraising techniques
        • Learn the secrets of recruiting and retaining artists
        • Harness the power of music to transform the hospital experience

Here are a few samples of Cathy’s workshops which can be customized for your situation, whether your program is in its infancy or you are looking to take it to the next level.

Nuts, Bolts & Notes
Building a Hospital Arts and Music Program from the Ground Floor Up
This workshop shows the best ways to start, expand and maintain an arts in healing program in your healthcare setting.

Marketing Your Program: From Recruitment to the Gala Fund-Raiser!
Learn to use partnerships, public relations, and the press to enhance awareness in the community and visibility within the institution.

Melody, Memory, Modes, and Moods
Using Music to Trigger Memories, Create Community and Enhance Mood.
This program has an experiential aspect and offers a specialization for Alzheimer’s and dementia clients. Explore the unique way music creates both an individual subjective experience and a community experience.

“Cathy’s positive attitude and knowledge of this field make her a great addition to any program or project. She is both compassionate and passionate, and an eloquent speaker. Because of her performing background, she is always aware of the audience and their needs, and this serves her well in her consultant and problem-solving work as well.”

Mary Rockwood Lane, Ph.D., RN, FAAN

Assistant Professor, UF College of Nursing

More About Cathy

As an expert in the field Cathy was commissioned by VSA Florida and the Department of State to write and edit “Piece by Piece: Building Successful Arts in Healthcare Programs.” This handbook is based on multiple consultations with healthcare facilities throughout the state. Since then she continues to present workshops and seminars on music and healing for universities, arts agencies, hospitals, and eldercare facilities. Her clients include Vanderbilt University, San Diego Hospice, the Alzheimer’s Association, LeBonheur Children’s Hospital, and Chelsea & Westminster Hospital and the Royal Hospital in London. She is a certified trainer for the National Center for Creative Aging. Cathy is the winner of a Fetzer Grant for her Healing Music Programs, the Florida Arts Council Individual Artist Enhancement Grant, the National League of Penwomen Award for Music, and the 2010 Musician of the Year in her hometown of Gainesville, Florida.

Contact Cathy to bring her to your hospital, hospice, elder care, or any location that needs a boost in setting up a music or arts in healing program.