A recent UK government-backed study has put hard numbers to the concept of cultural engagement as a measurable public good. According to research commissioned by the UK’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the health and well-being benefits of engaging with culture through museums, galleries, or heritage sites, for example, are worth an estimated £8 billion annually (roughly $10 billion).
For U.S. museums struggling with shrinking funding and a need to justify their relevance beyond tourism and education, this is compelling stuff. Is there a way for us to translate these findings into strategies to influence policymakers and funders here? What can we learn from all this?
The idea of culture as a public health tool
The UK study found that individuals who engage in cultural activities every few months see health and well-being benefits equivalent to £1,000 (about $1,270) per person per year. The research linked cultural engagement to reduced stress, lower instances of depression, even improved longevity.
We’ve long been aware of a connection between cultural engagement and improved health and wellness. But in the U.S., where our healthcare costs are among the highest in the world, having equivalent hard data could be an advocacy goldmine.
If our museums can be positioned more strongly as public health partners, it should open doors to new funding streams or partnerships … and ideally better policy support.
Many museums are already on this path. Think of programs like Meet Me at MoMA and its brethren, designed to support individuals with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers. These align closely with the UK findings and could be leveraged for additional funding if you can frame the work specifically in terms of health impact.
An evolution of museum partnerships
Yet again, collaboration is the order of the day. One of the big takeaways from the UK study is that museums don’t have to go it alone. UK institutions are entering partnerships with healthcare providers, local governments, and social services to integrate cultural visits into broader wellness initiatives. Check out the University of Edinburgh’s Prescribe Culture program, which offers museum visits as a non-clinical mental health intervention.
You may already be aware of that concept, also known as “social prescribing.” It’s gained traction in the UK, where doctors can prescribe cultural engagement alongside traditional treatment. Evidence shows that social prescribing takes pressure off the NHS by reducing the need for general practitioner appointments and medical prescriptions.
While the U.S. healthcare system doesn’t have a direct equivalent, our museums can benefit from partnering with public health departments, insurance providers, hospitals, or entire hospital systems to integrate cultural engagement into health and wellness initiatives. From a funding perspective, there’s money in healthcare — and we’re living in think-outside-the-box times.
Late last year, the American Alliance of Museums highlighted the exploding trend of museum-healthcare partnerships. I recommend visiting the linked article; you’ll find a host of interesting partnership avenues, from training, programming, exhibition development, and even co-location.
Just this week, a study came out regarding the the Museum Art in Neurology Education Training (MANET) project, which found that incorporating visual arts into neurology training can enhance medical students’ observational skills, empathy, and diagnostic abilities, ultimately leading to improved patient care.
Further recommended read: Museums, Health, and Wellness Compendium
Tweaking your strategy
Big picture, you can use the UK study as inspiration, giving you more options when it comes to fundraising, partnership, and advocacy strategies. Here are three general action items to consider:
- Think of ways to shift conversations from “museum as cultural spaces” to “museums as a public health assets.”
- Push for more specific research. You can already find studies pointing to a positive correlation between the health and cultural engagement, but studies that demonstrate cold, hard cost savings could be a game-changer for funding and policy discussions.
- Use the UK data combined with studies we do have to court new funding sources. You might find that health-focused foundations and corporate sponsors are more inclined to support if your pitch focuses on something like mental health and preventive care.
Above all, keep in mind that in our current era, this is an argument that has the potential to turn heads. If policymakers can be convinced that cultural investment isn’t merely a subsidy but a cost-saving public health measure, museums might get a little more of the funding and recognition they deserve.
In light of everything that’s going on, advocacy and fundraising are top of mind. Stay tuned next week for an in depth look at other persuasive arguments museums can make.
Further recommended reads: Arts and health converge in the National Endowment for the Arts grantmaking, research, and special programs and partnerships
Arts on Prescription: Embracing a New Culture of Health with “Social Prescribing” (from a U.S. perspective)
Museums as Medicine? The Growing Trend of Art Prescriptions
Health & Wellbeing on MuseumNext (inspiration and case studies from all over)
