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Child Life Department
Art Therapy
Art Therapy is an integrative mental health profession that enriches the lives of individuals, families, and communities through the clinical, evidence-based application of art and creative processes within a therapeutic relationship (American Art Therapy Association, 2017).
At Texas Children’s Hospital, our Art Therapy Program uses the expressive power of art to support the social, emotional, psychological, physical, and developmental needs of children and their families throughout hospitalization.
We recognize the value of art in helping children cope and adjust to their hospital experience, from a new diagnosis to medical treatment. As art naturally connects to how children relate and communicate about their world, the modality can provide a safe, developmentally sensitive way for children to navigate the world of the hospital.
From painting to collage, art therapy offers creative tools and interventions that aim to achieve the following goals:
- Provide opportunities for creativity and self-expression
- Promote relaxation and pain management
- Increase positive self-esteem and resilience
- Develop healthy problem-solving and adaptive skills
- Foster peer support and a sense of community in the medical environment
- Decrease stress and anxiety related to illness experience
- Improve cognitive and sensory-motor functions
- Facilitate legacy-building and memory-making
Art Therapy Services
Group and individual art therapy sessions are provided to various inpatient units and populations throughout Texas Children’s Hospital, including:
- Acute Care
- Behavioral Health
- Cancer and Hematology Center
- Critical Care
- Heart center
- The Woodlands Bariatric Clinic
Individual consults/referrals are available
