“People living in Ireland have access to creative and cultural activity as part of a holistic health journey throughout the life course, supporting better health and wellbeing outcomes and enriching the creative and artistic landscape.” Vision statement, Strategic Action Plan for Arts and Health (2025) Réalta is delighted to welcome the publication of Ireland’s first Strategic Action Plan for Arts and Health (2025) by the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (Creative Ireland), the Department of Health (Healthy Ireland/Sláintecare), the HSE, and the Arts Council/An Chomhairle Ealaíon. This Strategic Action Plan represents a significant step forward in recognising the vital role of arts and creativity in supporting public health and wellbeing. The Strategic Action Plan sets out the rationale for a joint policy approach, and outlines the steps involved in building an arts and health policy partnership in Ireland, beginning with the Memorandum of Understanding in December 2020 between the participating bodies, before setting out its clear and inclusive vision and six strategic objectives: Policy – To articulate a joint policy position on arts and health in Ireland and ensure co-ordinated input to international policy making. Evidence – To establish a research and evaluation framework for arts and health in Ireland to build the evidence base for sustainable project design and funding. Capacity – To provide training and support to equip creative and healthcare professionals to work together to embed creative and cultural activity in the health service in Ireland. Delivery – To prioritise suitable projects or pilot initiatives and design sustainable delivery mechanisms for their scaling. Governance – To design and implement governance and reporting arrangements to support a...

We at Réalta, the national resource organisation for arts + health in Ireland, wish to express our heartfelt gratitude to Maureen Kennelly as she steps down from her role as Director of the Arts Council. Maureen’s decades of experience working at all levels in the arts sector, together with her passion, commitment and vision, make her a most inspiring, compassionate, thoughtful leader.  She spearheaded so many positive developments during her tenure, which have had a beneficial impact on countless artists and arts organisations, and which will be her enduring legacy. Maureen has long been a tremendous supporter of the work of Waterford Healing Arts Trust, now Réalta, and we wish to extend our deepest appreciation for her encouragement, her energy and her unwavering support for our organisation, for arts + health, and for the wider arts sector.  We wish Maureen every health, happiness and success. 02.07.2025 Photo credit: The Arts Council / Ruth Medjber...

Réalta was thrilled to be in Belfast recently for the launch of the PAINT Policy Brief – Recommendations for Arts in Renal Care. For two years, Réalta has been a partner on the PAINT Project, a research project which involved the global mapping of arts interventions in renal care.  Led by the Renal Arts Group at Queen’s University Belfast (QUB), other partners included the World Health Organisation (WHO), The Center for Arts in Medicine at the University of Florida and Consultant Nephrologist Dr Mayleen Laico from Chong Hua Hospital, Philippines. The PAINT Policy Brief recommends growing the evidence base to demonstrate the value of arts activities during renal treatment; identifying arts champions within renal settings; mapping existing provision and developing collaborations across the world. A huge thank you to our partners on this project and especially the team at QUB, Prof Helen Noble, Dr Trisha Forbes and Anna Wilson. We look forward to seeing the impact of these recommendations as we work towards embedding arts in healthcare. The full research paper A Multi-Method International Mapping Exercise of Arts Interventions in Renal Units: The PAINT Project was published recently in the Nephron Journal. Further information about the research project, and the PAINT Policy Brief – Recommendations for Arts in Renal Care can be read here: https://www.qub.ac.uk/sites/renal-arts-group/Research/PAINTProject/ Photo: Pictured at the launch of the PAINT Policy Brief at Queens University Belfast (QUB) were (l-r) Prof Helen Noble, QUB; William Johnston, poet & renal dialysis patient; Claire Meaney, Director of Réalta; Jim McCaughan, Chair of the Northern Ireland Kidney Research Fund; Dr Trisha Forbes, Research Fellow at QUB; Stephen Greer, Renal Arts...

Event Information for Irish Doctors Orchestra Concert in aid of Réalta/Waterford Healing Arts on Sunday 29 Sept, 4.30pm at SETU Arena UPDATE at Sunday 1.30pm: We’re looking forward to our concert this afternoon with the Irish Doctors Orchestra, 4.30pm at SETU Arena.  The weather in the south-east isn’t great, so if any ticketholders are not comfortable travelling to the concert & would like a refund, please email whatartshealth@gmail.com by 3pm. After this cut-off time, we won’t be able to issue refunds.  Anyone who doesn’t have a ticket & would like to attend, tickets will be available on the door.  Travel safely everyone. Parking: There is ample parking at the venue and there will be two car park attendants on duty before the concert.  There are additional spaces reserved for anyone who may require parking close to the entrance for mobility reasons. Tickets: For anyone who booked online through Eventbrite, you will have received your tickets by email directly from Eventbrite.  If you’re having trouble accessing your tickets, please don’t worry – We will have a list of all who have booked via Eventbrite on the door, so we can check you in that way.  We will also have some tickets for sale on the door, so if you know of anyone who may be interested in coming, we would be grateful if you could let them know. Concert: The concert begins at 4.30pm and will last approximately two hours, with a 15-minute interval.  There’s a wonderful programme of music in store and a very nice souvenir programme to take home.  Our sincere thanks to our programme sponsors for their support. Seating: Seating is...