Dewey wins $50,000 research grant

Research by Associate Professor and Director Patricia Dewey, of the Arts and Administration Program, has been recognized with a $50,000 Incubating Interdisciplinary Initiatives (I3) Award from the University of Oregon Office of Research, Innovation, and Graduate Education (RIGE).

Dewey serves as coordinator of the arts in healthcare management concentration in AAD. Her UO “Arts in Healthcare” research team was awarded the grant for a start-up fund and a PhD research fellowship position specializing in medical anthropology, which will be housed in the Department of Anthropology for the 2013-2014 academic year. The RIGE I3 grants furnish twelve months of funding to support research projects.

Dewey’s fellow team members on the project include Assistant Professor Pranjal Mehta, Department of Psychology; Associate Professor Josh Snodgrass, Department of Anthropology; Assistant Professor Kristin Yarris, Department of International Studies; and Instructor Laura Zaerr, School of Music and Dance. This multidisciplinary team comprises research faculty expertise in arts policy and management, medical anthropology, biological anthropology, social psychology, and therapeutic arts interventions.

The research project, titled “The Role of Arts Programs in Fostering an Organizational Culture of Patient-Centered Care and an Environment of Healing in Hospitals and Hospices,” is aimed at identifying the kinds of management policies and practices required for strategic implementation of arts programs to create an organizational culture of healing in hospital and hospice settings.

With the RIGE I3 grant, the interdisciplinary team of UO faculty in collaboration with partners at Sacred Hearth Medical Center RiverBend and Samaritan Health Services will conduct several pilot study projects that will inform development of a theoretical framework within which the relationship among arts programs and an organizational culture of healing can be further tested, with the potential to attract significant external funding streams.

“We are thrilled to have the resources to launch a significant new research and education agenda based at UO,” Dewey said. “With changes in healthcare environments and the aging population as healthcare consumers, people are expecting and demanding arts programs as part of their healthcare experience. More than half of the nation’s hospitals and hospices now provide extensive arts-based programs for patients, families, caregivers, and staff. With the rapid professionalization of the field, there is an urgent need for research and professional training.”

The arts in healthcare management concentration in the AAD master’s degree program prepares individuals for leadership in arts programs affiliated with hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, senior centers, and hospice facilities. This concentration concerns policy and administration efforts that focus on how arts in healthcare contribute to quality of life, patient healing and wellness, and community health and well-being.

“The submissions we received for this award program provided significant evidence that interdisciplinarity is integral to the way UO researchers view and address major challenges in all areas of life — from health care to the environment to education,” said Kimberly Andrews Espy, vice president for research and innovation. “I have great appreciation for the faculty members and staff on the review group for their thoughtful consideration and comments on each proposal. It was gratifying to our office to receive so many outstanding proposals.”

The I3 award program, which debuts this year, aims to foster interdisciplinary research groups at UO in support of developing of large-scale projects. I3 partnerships emerge from shared research interests across UO departments and colleges, and are developed with an eye toward external funding opportunities, UO’s institutional strengths, and academic priorities. Partnerships may also include external institutions of strategic importance. Awards were distributed to teams that span academic divisions: natural science, social science, education, law, arts, music, education, and two external organizations.

More information about the 2013 I3 awards and other programming offered through Research Development Services can be found on the Research Development Services website.

- from the UO School of Architecture and Allied Arts