MORE THAN JUST ART
Family credits the Arts in Medicine program for a positive patient experience
FISHER ADOPTED MARSHAL ONE YEAR BEFORE HE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH OSTEOSARCOMA, A RARE FORM OF BONE CANCER. Because Marshal was a creative child, Fisher searched for ways her son could find an artistic outlet while undergoing treatment at UF Health Shands. This search for creativity was how she learned about the UF Health Shands Arts in Medicine program.
“I don’t know what we would do without it,” Fisher said. “That sounds so cliché, but in our situation, it was really true.”
For four years, Marshal underwent treatment in his fight against cancer, and the entire time, he was an active participant with AIM.
“Although I knew Marshal was artistic, I had no idea how much he would come to rely on that,” she said. “Throughout the good and the bad sides of the whole experience, art just allowed Marshal to stay busy, distracted and to be hopeful.”
Although Marshal passed away two years ago, Fisher continues to show her support for AIM and to those who helped her son. She is a member of the UF Health Shands Hospital Patient and Family Advisory Council, which helps her keep Marshal’s creative spirit alive while also promoting the program that brought their family so much joy.
“That hospital and program gave so much to us,” she said. “I can’t just walk away from it, so it’s important for me to give back in any way I can and share Marshal’s story and his love for art.”
Arts in Medicine held a two-month exhibit to honor Marshal in which they showcased his work and showed how important art can be in a patient’s life.
“It was a blessing that Arts in Medicine was able to get him the resources he needed and the people to sit there and just be with him and let him get to work,” Fisher said. “It was incredible.”
The art of distraction
Every interaction with a patient is different.
AIM musician-in-residence Michael Claytor has had countless patient and family experiences during his seven years with AIM.
“Sometimes, patients sing along. Sometimes, they listen to song after song. Sometimes, they want to talk,” Claytor said. “It is an honor to get to do this work.”
After singing four songs with one patient, Claytor will stroll through the hospital hall again, guitar in hand, looking for someone else who might need a song that day.
He recalled finding Odessa Daye from Jasper sitting in a chair by the window in her room. Recovering from a knee replacement surgery, Daye was worn out, but she was open to a song.
“Do you know ‘I Will Always Love You’ by Whitney Houston?” she asked.
Claytor smiled. “I can do the Dolly Parton version. I can’t do Whitney. I know my limits.”
She chuckled, and Claytor began to play. Daye is not a singer, but she couldn’t help singing along.
“That’s my favorite song,” she said, sighing, when Claytor finished. “You just played my favorite song. That made my day.”
