As a patient, a waiting area can be a nerve-racking place. You might be anxious about your own condition or feel uneasy when you see others who are visibly ill or injured. Fortunately, the Cochrane and Area Health Foundation (CAHF) is aware of this and is always looking for creative solutions to ease patient tension and make trips to the Cochrane Community Health and Urgent Care Centre more pleasant.
“The CAHF, Cochrane and Area Health Foundation, understands that mental and physical health in our community are closely linked,” said Cinthia Zeer, a CAHF trustee.
“Communities with good mental health services often have lower rates of chronic illness, better coping skills for stress, an overall safer community and more engagement in healthy behaviours in our Cochrane community. It affects every aspect of life here.”
Zeer, a career nurse, joined the foundation because she values increasing access to quality health care in her hometown.
“I love Cochrane,” she said. “It’s growing so quickly that we desperately needed our own health foundation to keep up with its growing demands.”
In addition to her passion for health care, Zeer is also a long-time local artist. She is a featured artist at Route 22 Gallery, with works showcased at The Station and the Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary.
“I think that art is a powerful medium,” she said. “It brings a lot of joy and happiness to the people who see it.”
Combining her passions, Zeer pitched an idea to the foundation to install a mural in the addictions and mental health wing of the health centre. The proposal was brought forward earlier this year and was met with overwhelming support from the board.
“When I presented the idea to them, they voted unanimously to proceed with it and cover the cost,” she said. “We tried to get it done in May to coincide with Mental Health Month. Every time patients go into the waiting room, it will be uplifting for them.”
Funded by their Two Heart Pharmacy fund, Zeer and the foundation commissioned muralist Isabel Landry to complete the work.
“I showed her the space, and she proposed three pieces that she thought would look good there,” Zeer said. “We wanted this to be collaborative, so we didn’t decide which one to use. Instead, we let the staff and patients vote.”
The winning piece is a multicoloured landscape of mountains and trees covering the entire wall of the waiting area. It combines the serene, calming presence of nature with the familiar landscape of Cochrane.
“I think we take such pride in our community that when we see it, it does feel like Cochrane,” said Zeer. “It definitely has that feeling — with the mountains and trees, you know we see that every day in our town.”
With the positive reception of the mural and the pediatric wing project done a year prior, Zeer is optimistic more projects can follow.
“I’m always on the search for ways to bring beauty into our facilities, so of course in the future we’ll see more, I’m sure.”
