HHV supports creative expression as rehabilitative tool

Abstract

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Help Hospitalized Veterans (HHV) is the nation's largest supplier of therapeutic arts and crafts kits used within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and military hospitals. Since its inception, HHV has delivered more than 25 million kits, along with other products and services, valued at (including shipping) $410 million. All products and services are provided free of charge to more than 300 medical facilities that care for our hospitalized veterans and active-duty military personnel. HHV provides over 350 different kits, including leather items, sun-catchers, paint-by-numbers, latch-hook rugs, poster art, plastic and wood models/crafts, and many more. The kits are rehabilitative devices designed to restore coordination and impaired motor skills, improve attention spans and concentration, and relax frayed nerves. They are also a diversion therapy and entertainment outlet for those veterans who are facing extended hospitalization and/or confinement. Additionally, HHV has provided other products and services to homebound veterans and cash support to many of VA's annual special events. HHV'S CRAFT CARE SPECIALIST PROGRAM To ensure maximum craft kit availability, HHV supplements VA staff by employing 62 craft care specialists (CCSs) to work in VA and military hospitals. The primary role of a CCS is to distribute craft kits, participate in the veteran's rehabilitation program, and recommend craft kits suitable for each veteran's condition and skill level, often helping the veteran enhance the finished product. By working closely with hospitalized veterans, CCSs offer meaningful interaction and boost morale. CCSs also conduct arts and crafts workshops in the hospitals they serve, greatly increasing craft kit participation. CCSs also help recruit volunteers for the VA Voluntary Service program. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ACCOUNTABILITY AND PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT In today's environment, accountability is an especially pressing concern. Organizations are competing--each must be prepared to demonstrate empirically that their program is appropriate, available, timely, effective, safe, efficient, continuous, respectful, and caring. HHV took a far-reaching step by initiating a performance measurement study to determine the effectiveness of its programs and promote understanding and support for hospitalized veterans [1]. The study demonstrated the therapeutic value of HHV's craft kit program to veteran patients, host hospitals, and HHV's generous donors. Measurement is by no means unfamiliar in healthcare. VA, military, and private sector health organizations routinely measure responses to therapy, staffing levels, and cost. However, to our knowledge, no organization similar to HHV has ever conducted a study on arts and crafts used in a therapeutic setting. Four levels of difficulty were assigned to each craft kit category, with level one being the simplest and four the most difficult, as evidenced by the average number of hours it took a patient to complete a particular kit. This voluntary initiative allowed HHV to quantify its craft kit program performance with measures of patient health outcome, satisfaction, and effectiveness of the CCS program. Health Care Data, Inc. (HCD) studied HHV programs in 13 VA hospitals and state veterans nursing homes. DATA COLLECTION Each medical facility was given a user manual and computer disk to use in the collection of data. Outcome measurement data were collected during 1 week of each quarter by the therapists or CCSs and submitted to HCD. Innumerable outcomes could produce meaningful data. This initial data collection system targeted only 10 outcome measures. These 10 were chosen for their general applicability and the perceived need for accurate data in these areas: * Aggregate Performance measure based on collection and accumulation of data about many events. …