Iechyd Da-wns! | Dance to Health: Creative Movement for Falls Prevention

The Arts In Health team @ABUHB are pleased to be working with Artis Community and Ballet Cymru to offer a programme of movement sessions in the community designed with falls prevention in mind. The partnership has raised funding for these sessions and bespoke projects in ABUHB from the Arts In Health Lottery funding (Arts Council of Wales) and the Oak Foundation.

 

The arts and health programme originally developed by Aesop uses joyful, creative dance movements to help older people build strength, balance and confidence, and reduce the risk of falls. Participants can self-refer into the programme, and the first sessions are running in June.

Weekly sessions start from June at:

The Riverfront, Newport: Monday 29th June 2pm - 4pm

The Widdershin's Centre, Pontypool: Monday 10.30am - 12.30pm

To book a place, please email d2h@artiscommunity.org.uk

This project follows on from ground-breaking work by Aesop in Swansea and the UK, where participants have said:

• “Just what the doctor should have ordered… exercise with a smile!”
• “My walking, posture and balance feels better and safer than before”
• “Dance to Health lifts my spirits and benefits my body! It’s as simple as that!"
• “I found that the dance movements were covering all the individual exercises that the physio had recommended but they were now enjoyable and not a chore”
• “No matter what mood I arrive in, I leave with a smile on my face… It’s the highlight of the week. I wouldn’t miss this for the world”

Strictly Come Dancing Star Amy Dowden joined the Swansea class in January to promote how creativity and arts in healthcare can have a major impact: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgezg859zgqo 

You can watch a film about the project here: https://vimeo.com/1092827059

In 2020, Aesop commissioned independent evaluation from Sheffield Hallam University about this programme, and findings from the research show that:

• Dance to Health is helping older people in danger of falling overcome lost confidence, reduced independence and increased isolation
• There was a 58% reduction in the number of falls, positive improvements in participants' physical and mental wellbeing, including improved Timed Up and Go (TUG) times (an average reduction in time of 20%), a reduced fear of falling (over 10% improvement in the percentage of individuals classed as "low concern") and a small improvement in Patient Activation Measure (PAM) scores (an increase of over one point, from a score of 71.1 to a follow-up average score of 72.3).

Additionally, based on the analysis conducted, there is a potential cost saving of over £196m over a 2-year period, of which £158m is a potential cost saving for the NHS. Dance to Health's fidelity to existing physiotherapy programmes was also confirmed.

Read more here: Dance to Health Report