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News Release

Society for the Arts in Healthcare Conference - Up

April 25, 2009

Contacts :
Evlyn Baker
Society for the Arts in Healthcare
202-299-9770

Dave Wedekindt
UB Center for the Arts
717-645-6775 or drw6@buffalo.edu


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Society for the Arts in Healthcare’s 20th Annual Conference:

Center for the Arts, University at Buffalo hosts “Approaching Health Creatively” in Buffalo

Washington, DC, April 6, 2009 – The Society for the Arts in Healthcare and the University at Buffalo (UB) will convene over 350 international art and healthcare professionals and students in Buffalo, New York, April 22 – 25, 2009 to explore strategies and best practices for incorporating the arts into healthcare settings. Hands-on workshops, participatory seminars, posters, tours and performances will offer participants a unique view of the vital role the arts play in health.

“This conference is unique in converging a very broad array of professionals dedicated to improving health and quality of life through the arts. Artists, therapists, healthcare providers, administrators, educators and researchers will present and discuss exciting developments in the field,” said Thomas Burrows, Executive Director of the UB Center for the Arts, who recently launched an innovative arts in healthcare program with 12 professional Artists in Residence at Women & Children’s Hospital of Buffalo and Roswell Park Cancer Institute.

The Society for the Arts in Healthcare, based in Washington, DC, is a nonprofit membership organization dedicated to advancing the arts as integral to healthcare. Over 1,700 Society members serve patients, families, caregivers and communities in the US and abroad. Anita Boles, Executive Director of the Society said, “In a time when healthcare needs are greater than ever, we draw together international leaders in arts and health to affirm the crucial role that the arts play in health and wellness.”

PRESENTERS

Keynote speakers include:

· Shaun McNiff, PhD, Dean of Lesley College & University Professor, Lesley University, Cambridge, Massachusetts

· Bryan Lawson, DipArch, MSc, PhD, RIBA, Dean of Architecture, University of Sheffield, UK

· Randy Cohen, Vice President of Local Arts Advancement, Americans for the Arts, Washington, DC

· Rha Goddess, Executive Producer, The Hip Hop Mental Health Project/1+1+1=ONE, Brooklyn, NY

· Len Horovitz, MD, Board Certified Internist, Lung Specialist and Concert Pianist, New York, NY

The conference will feature over 100 presenters, including:

• Renowned artists: Heidi Latsky Dance and Babik jazz musicians

• Leading arts and healthcare experts: Yvonne Pepin-Wakefield, PhD, Kuwait University, Kuwait City, Kuwait; Sarah Dobbs, Bloorview Kids Rehab, Toronto, Canada; Margret Meagher, Director, Arts and Health Australia; and Paul Camic, PhD, Canterbury Christ Church University, UK

• Premier corporate, foundation and government leaders: Ashley Atkins, Johnson & Johnson; Donald L. Trump, MD, FACP, President & CEO Roswell Park Cancer Institute; Paul T. Hogan, John R. Oishei Foundation; and Paula Terry, Office of AccessAbility, National Endowment for the Arts


SPECIAL EVENTS
Julia Sweeney, comedian formerly of “Saturday Night Live” and playwright will perform her monologue, “God Said Ha,” about surviving a painful period of her life when both she and her brother were diagnosed with cancer.

The 2nd Annual Society for the Arts in Healthcare Film Festival will screen and award films that reflect the value of arts in healing. The event will be emceed by Ron Santora of WNED Television. A post-screening panel discussion with artists and filmmakers will inspire the audience and provide a unique view into the filmmaking process.

The conference will honor Buffalo’s rich cultural heritage and prestigious medical community with a tour of Albright-Knox Art Gallery and the Roswell Park Cancer Institute, featuring the stunning landscape design of WJK Park. An additional tour will visit the Women & Children’s Hospital of Buffalo and The Burchfield-Penney Art Center.


ATTENDEES
Artists, curators, healthcare decision-makers, healthcare providers and anyone interested in exploring the therapeutic, recreational or educational benefits of the arts in healthcare are invited to attend the conference. Events will be held at the Hyatt Regency Buffalo. For more information or to register for the conference, visit www.thesah.org.


SPONSORS
Conference sponsors include: Center for the Arts, University at Buffalo, Drexel University, Johnson & Johnson, Texas Children's Hospital, Earl Swensson Associates, Inc., National Endowment for the Arts, Vanderbilt University, Americans for the Arts, Routledge: Taylor & Francis Group, University of Michigan, Herman Miller, Nazareth College and WNED Television, among others.

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About the Society for the Arts in Healthcare

The Society for the Arts in Healthcare is a non-profit 501c3 international organization based in Washington, DC. Founded in 1991, it is dedicated to advancing the arts as integral to healthcare. Funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts and Johnson & Johnson, the Society for the Arts in Healthcare provides program development support through grants, consultant services and the convening of conferences and symposia to a wide range of arts and healthcare institutions. Over 1,700 Society for the Arts in Healthcare members, including artists and healthcare professionals, serve patients and their families in the US and abroad. For more information, visit www.thesah.org or call 202-299-9770.

About the Center for the Arts, University at Buffalo:

The Center for the Arts opened in 1994 on the University at Buffalo’s North (Amherst) campus and is dedicated to the enrichment of the cultural life of the campus and the surrounding community through the presentation of public art and cultural events of the highest quality. Often stepping beyond the campus to engage the community through art and education outreach programs, the Center launched an Arts in Healthcare initiative in the Fall of 2008 with Women & Children’s Hospital of Buffalo and Roswell Park Cancer Institute. Twelve local artists were hired and trained to work as Artists in Residence in the hospitals and select professional touring productions from the Center’s season are adapted to the hospital settings. Two evaluative studies were undertaken by faculty in the School of Social Work and the School of Nursing. The Center’s goal is to enhance the field regionally. For more information, visit www.ubcfa.org.