Glasgow's health board has made art a vital part of health care

As far back as 1869, Florence Nightingale argued for the benefit of "beautiful objects" and "brilliancy of colour" to help the sick return to good health.

But NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has made the arts integral to its estate across the city, with not only exhibitions in hospitals but also live events.

Although the pandemic caused much of the art activity to grind to a halt, there are plans now to reinvigorate the creative programme.

Jackie Sands, Health Improvement Senior: Arts and Health, is the woman behind the drive to ensure Glasgow's hospitals benefit from therapeutic art.

She joined NHS GGC in 2005 on a two year contract as a strategic arts and health coordinator to promote art and creativity ahead of major building programmes, including the New Victoria and Stobhill hospitals and the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

Such was the success of her work that 16 years later she's still here.

Jackie, whose background is in theatre design and art in architecture, said: "We delivered the Victoria and Stobhill and people could see that it wasn't just pictures in frames on walls, the arts was much broader than that.

"The Queen Elizabeth was a major project and in 2015 when it opened, it had a therapeutic backdrop that supports wayfinding; quiet rooms for discrete conversations with art and therapeutic design built in; decal designs to support wayfinding in the children and adult's hospital and more than 80 artworks in the adult wards."

The 14-storey Queen Elizabeth, one of the UK's largest hospitals, has a cathedral-like atrium at its entrance, designed like a public square to accommodate performances.

Before the pandemic hit, the hospital had a live arts programme with an electric mix of performances from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland to Govan Songsters and DJ George Bowie.

Jackie said: "We had the Nevis Ensemble just coming in and playing right in the middle of the atrium - everything from Dancing Queen to classical numbers.

"We had cleaning staff dancing and it was such a morale boost. Staff said it made their day to come in and find something going on in the atrium."

During the pandemic, the arts programme was forced to stop and Jackie said the hospital moved to a "utilitarian social distanced, factory-like atmosphere".

Inspired by Glasgow Piano City, which restores donated pianos and puts them in public spaces, Jackie sourced a piano for the Queen Elizabeth entrance hall.

During lockdown, due to infection controls needs, it was locked away in a cupboard - but it's now back in use on request from patients.

Jackie said: "The whole thrust behind my work is to improve patient, visitor and staff experience and that's breaking down barriers and creating access - whether that's to arts and culture or comfort and welcome; whether that's reducing anxiety which can come from not knowing how to get somewhere or getting lost.

"Having culture be part of healthcare helps to reduce the clinical effect of the environment, which can often raise anxiety.

"Cultural programmes also help to bring patient voices and stories into the environment through artwork so people can feel distracted by the artwork or stories.

"There's strong evidence around all of this as well that it does reduce anxiety.

"If you've got better views and you feel calmer, you'll make less demands on nurse time because you might need fewer painkillers.

"Therapeutic art has so many benefits."

Patients are also offered art projects to take part in.

Jackie added: "While nurses and medical staff do what they can, there's a gap which can often be filled with spiritual care such as chaplaincy.

"But I think art plays a role as well to create community and activity and demonstrate care and distraction.

"And often people feel differently afterwards, they've got a new narrative about themselves, and it's quite motivating if you're not feeling very well that you've got something you've created.

"It helps with communication between staff and patient too, because they're not just a number any more, they are a person with a story."

During the pandemic, Jackie was determined that art would still play a role so, among other projects, she worked with Scottish Ballet to share the company's digital output for staff and patients and the wider community.

Just before lockdown, NHS GGC appointed a new hospital arts curator, Will Cooper, who has put together a two year programme of art and exhibitions.

This involves a collaboration with the Sculpture Placement Group that will see sculptures on display around the Queen Elizabeth.

Exhibitions are now returning to hospitals with the Queen Elizabeth currently hosting Woven In Govan, running until April, an international collaboration with waterfront communities in Ukraine, Sweden and Glasgow.

Artists involved in Woven In Govan were inspired by pandemic events to focus on the theme of care, producing work based on everything from the volunteers behind NHS GGC's Give and Go service to the stories of nurses.

Jackie said it is an "exciting time" for the hospital with the art programme closely supporting major plans to revitalise the landscape around the Queen Elizabeth.

She is also hoping a cultural app will be developed for the city's hospitals so that visitors can simply download the app and find out what's on offer.

Fortunately Glasgow's rich cultural landscape provides plenty of choice for fulfilling Jackie's spool of ideas.

She added: "We've five national companies, we've got the biggest arts community outside London, the Glasgow School of Art and the Royal Conservatoire.

"It's so fantastic, it's a really, really great place with lots of resource and partnerships to be built.

"I think we're going to go from strength to strength."