Profession art therapist
Art therapists help patients overcome psychological and emotional difficulties through an artistic process which reflects emotions and feelings, focusing on patients who suffer a variety of problems such as mental, psychological, and behavioural disorders in order to facilitate self-understanding and awareness.
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Personality Type
- Social / Investigative
- Investigative / Social
Knowledge
- Psychological theories
The historical development of counselling and psychological theories, as well as the perspectives, applications, and interviewing and counselling strategies.
- Techniques of practice in art therapy
The direct experience of the therapeutic utility and psychological influence of art processes and materials, and the therapeutic effect of art making, leading to the establishment of therapeutic goals and intervention strategies.
- Cognitive psychology
The human mental processes such as attention, memory, language use, perception, problem solving, creativity and thinking.
- Human psychological development
The human psychological development across the lifespan, theories of personality development, cultural and environmental influences, human behavior, including developmental crises, disability, exceptional behavior, and addictive behavior.
- Fine arts
The theory and techniques required to compose, produce and perform works of visual arts as drawing, painting, sculpture and other art forms.
- Behavioural therapy
The characteristics and foundations of behavioural therapy, which focuses on changing patients` unwanted or negative behaviour. It involves studying the present behaviour and the means by which this can be un-learned.
- Sociology
The group behaviour and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.
- Health care legislation
The patients` rights and responsibilities of health practitioners and the possible repercussions and prosecutions in relation to medical treatment negligence or malpractice.
- Psychopathology
The criteria of psychiatric diagnoses, the use of the disease classification system, and the theories of psychopathology. The indicators of functional and organic disorders and the types of psychopharmacological medications.
- Theory of art therapy
The art therapy history and theory, events, and practitioners, and the development of art therapy as a distinct therapeutic practice, the overview of psychotherapy theories relevant to art therapy, theories of creativity, and theoretical foundations of art therapy.
Skills
- Comply with quality standards related to healthcare practice
Apply quality standards related to risk management, safety procedures, patients feedback, screening and medical devices in daily practice, as they are recognized by the national professional associations and authorities.
- Apply art therapy interventions
Treat children, adolescents, adults, couples and families in inpatient, outpatient, partial treatment programs, and aftercare with art therapy interventions, to explore verbal, behavioral, and artistic communication, treatment planning, treatment approaches and relationship dynamics.
- Contribute to continuity of health care
Contribute to the delivery of coordinated and continuous healthcare.
- Interact with healthcare users
Communicate with clients and their carer’s, with the patient’s permission, to keep them informed about the clients’ and patients’ progress and safeguarding confidentiality.
- Use e-health and mobile health technologies
Use mobile health technologies and e-health (online applications and services) in order to enhance the provided healthcare.
- Apply organisational techniques
Employ a set of organisational techniques and procedures which facilitate the achievement of the set goals set such as detailed planning of personnel's schedules. Use these resources efficiently and sustainably, and show flexibility when required.
- Listen actively
Give attention to what other people say, patiently understand points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times; able to listen carefully the needs of customers, clients, passengers, service users or others, and provide solutions accordingly.
- Take referred patients
Take referred patients, including self-referred ones and referrals from other professionals such as teachers, psychologists, therapists and psychiatrists.
- Follow clinical guidelines
Follow agreed protocols and guidelines in support of healthcare practice which are provided by healthcare institutions, professional associations, or authorities and also scientific organisations.
- Communicate effectively in healthcare
Communicate effectively with patients, families and other caregivers, health care professionals, and community partners.
- Schedule artistic activities
Plan, design and facilitate a schedule of artistic activities for individuals and groups.
- Deal with emergency care situations
Assess the signs and be well-prepared for a situation that poses an immediate threat to a person's health, security, property or environment.
- Work in a multicultural environment in health care
Interact, relate and communicate with individuals from a variety of different cultures, when working in a healthcare environment.
- Enable patients to explore artworks
Enable patients to discover and explore works of art and the artistic production process.
- Organise relapse prevention
Help the patient or client identify and anticipate high risk situations or external and internal triggers. Support them in developing better coping strategies and back-up plans in case of future difficulties.
- Accept own accountability
Accept accountability for one`s own professional activities and recognise the limits of one`s own scope of practice and competencies.
- Respond to changing situations in health care
Cope with pressure and respond appropriately and in time to unexpected and rapidly changing situations in healthcare.
- Challenge patient behaviour by means of art
Constructively challenge the behaviour, attitude and mind-set of patients through art therapy sessions.
- Work in multidisciplinary health teams
Participate in the delivery of multidisciplinary health care, and understand the rules and competences of other healthcare related professions.
- Apply context specific clinical competences
Apply professional and evidence based assessment, goal setting, delivery of intervention and evaluation of clients, taking into account the developmental and contextual history of the clients, within one`s own scope of practice.
- Manage healthcare users' data
Keep accurate client records which also satisfy legal and professional standards and ethical obligations in order to facilitate client management, ensuring that all clients' data (including verbal, written and electronic) are treated confidentially.
- Encourage healthcare user's self-monitoring
Encourage the healthcare user to engage in self-monitoring by conducting situational and developmental analyses on him- or herself. Assist the healthcare user to develop a degree of self-critique and self-analysis in regards to his behaviour, actions, relationships and self-awareness.
- Prepare treatment plan for art therapy
Make a treatment plan outlining possible art therapy strategies such as drawing, painting, sculpture, and collage with patients ranging from young children to the elderly, looking for forms of art therapy that might be helpful in meeting the patient`s needs.
- Educate on the prevention of illness
Offer evidence-based advice on how to avoid ill health, educate and advise individuals and their carers on how to prevent ill health and/or be able to advise how to improve their environment and health conditions. Provide advice on the identification of risks leading to ill health and help to increase the patients' resilience by targeting prevention and early intervention strategies.
- Provide health education
Provide evidence based strategies to promote healthy living, disease prevention and management.
- Adhere to organisational guidelines
Adhere to organisational or department specific standards and guidelines. Understand the motives of the organisation and the common agreements and act accordingly.
- Use art in a therapeutic setting
Work creatively with various groups of patients in a therapeutic setting.
- Develop a collaborative therapeutic relationship
Develop a mutually collaborative therapeutic relationship during treatment, fostering and gaining healthcare users' trust and cooperation.
- Comply with legislation related to health care
Comply with the regional and national legislation that is relevant to one`s work and apply it in practice.
- Refer healthcare users
Make referrals to other professionals, based on the healthcare user's requirements and needs, especially when recognising that additional healthcare diagnostics or interventions are required.
- Assess art therapy sessions
Evaluate the effectiveness of art therapy sessions to aid the planning of subsequent sessions.
- Apply health sciences
Apply a broad range of bio-medical, psycho-social, organisational, educational, and societal aspects of health, disease, and healthcare to improve healthcare services and to improve quality of life.
- Formulate a case conceptualisation model for therapy
Compose an individualised treatment plan in collaboration with the individual, striving to match his or her needs, situation, and treatment goals to maximise the probability of therapeutic gain; considering any possible personal, social, and systemic barriers that might undermine treatment.
- Use techniques to increase patients' motivation
Encourage the patient`s motivation to change and promote the belief that therapy can help, using techniques and treatment engagement procedures for this purpose.
- Advise on healthcare users' informed consent
Ensure patients/clients are fully informed about the risks and benefits of proposed treatments so they can give informed consent, engaging patients/clients in the process of their care and treatment.
- Inform policy makers on health-related challenges
Provide useful information related to health care professions to ensure policy decisions are made in the benefit of communities.
- Ensure safety of healthcare users
Make sure that healthcare users are being treated professionally, effectively and safe from harm, adapting techniques and procedures according to the person's needs, abilities or the prevailing conditions.
- Maintain healthcare user data confidentiality
Comply with and maintain the confidentiality of healthcare users` illness and treatment information.
- Promote inclusion
Promote inclusion in health care and social services and respect diversity of beliefs, culture, values and preferences, keeping in mind the importance of equality and diversity issues.
- Assess the patient's therapeutic needs
Observe and assess the patient`s behaviour, attitudes and emotions in order to understand if and how their therapeutic needs can be met with a specific kind of therapy, collecting and analysing information on how the client makes, responds to, and relates to artistic stimulae. Relate this information to other aspects of the patient`s life.