The WHO Regional Office for Europe, with support from the European Union, is expanding efforts to help Eastern Partnership countries integrate arts and culture into their health systems. Through a series of regional capacity-building workshops, the initiative aims to catalyse country-led action and strengthen collaboration between the health and cultural sectors. The effort responds to mounting pressures on health systems across the region, including demographic change, workforce shortages and the growing mental health impacts of trauma, isolation and chronic stress.
Recognising the value of arts and culture in promoting recovery, resilience and dignity in care, particularly in mental health and well-being, WHO/Europe is encouraging countries to move beyond fragmented projects towards structured, evidence-based approaches aligned with national health priorities. This work forms part of the Building Arts Capacity for Health pillar within the broader EU-funded Health Resilience in the Eastern Partnership programme. Financed by the European Commission, the three-year initiative supports Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine in strengthening health workforce capacities and enhancing mental health systems through collaboration with the cultural sector.
In late 2025, WHO/Europe convened workshops for the five participating countries to map existing arts-in-health initiatives, identify key institutions and individuals, and deepen cooperation between the health and cultural fields. Participants explored how to design and implement arts-based interventions in ways that are sustainable and measurable. Integrating arts and culture into healthcare can take many forms, from museum visits that reduce loneliness and foster social cohesion to dance programmes for people living with Parkinson’s disease, music therapy for individuals with dementia, or choir participation to support respiratory health. The field of arts in health is increasingly recognised as interdisciplinary and evidence-based, complementing biomedical approaches while broadening the scope of public health practice.
The workshops emphasised practical learning, with experts guiding participants through co-design tools, evaluation methods and case studies of arts-based interventions in health centres and rehabilitation settings. Discussions also addressed governance, ethical standards and monitoring frameworks to ensure that creative health initiatives can be scaled effectively. In Yerevan, stakeholders from Armenia and Georgia examined how creativity can strengthen mental health and psychosocial support, enhance community engagement and reduce stigma. In Chișinău, participants from the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine explored how arts-based approaches can bolster mental well-being, support health workforce resilience and drive service innovation.
Cross-sector collaboration emerged as a central theme, with representatives from ministries of health and culture, local authorities, universities and civil society highlighting the importance of coordinated planning and funding. Participants stressed that embedding arts and culture within national health agendas can improve access to quality services and address the emotional and social dimensions of health. Ukrainian civil society voices underscored the need for stronger partnerships between government, artists and mental health professionals to ensure long-term sustainability.
Looking ahead, WHO/Europe plans to support pilot arts-in-health initiatives, develop monitoring and evaluation frameworks, and foster regional learning through communities of practice. By translating workshop insights into implementable projects and aligning them with national mental health strategies and broader system reforms, the initiative seeks to embed arts and culture within resilient, people-centred health systems. Through this collaboration, WHO and the EU aim to harness creative solutions to strengthen health resilience across the Eastern Partnership region.
