Elder Care Alliance Announces New Book Exploring an Approach to Art Therapy Rooted in Elder Autonomy and Collaboration
February 21, 2019
ALAMEDA, CA–Elder Care Alliance announces that Experiential Researcher-In-Residence Dr. Erin Partridge has published a book titled “Art Therapy with Older Adults: Connected and Empowered” with Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
This important new contribution to art therapy scholarship is based on pioneering research conducted in partnership with Elder Care Alliance at Mercy Retirement & Care Center in Oakland, CA. A crucial perspective for the book was the active role residents at Mercy Retirement & Care Center themselves took in helping to create the research.
While this is a clinical book, Dr. Partridge explains that it contains many compelling narrative stories assembled from years of work with the population. This book will have meaning for anyone working with, living with or supporting older adults across a variety of settings.
The book outlines a framework for art therapy with older adults rooted in belief in the autonomy and self-efficacy of older adults, including those with dementia or other diseases of later life. “The older adult population is generally under-represented in the research and clinical literature of the social sciences. This book includes their voices, their creative expressions, and their special strengths in the development of a new philosophy for therapeutic work with older adults,” said Dr. Partridge.
In announcing this book release, Rosemary Jordan, vice president of business development and strategy at Elder Care Alliance, explained the importance of research, creation and innovation at the nonprofit senior living organization.
“Supporting original research at our communities with our residents is a key part of who we are,” said Jordan. “We consider it part of our mission to help advance scholarship that informs and illuminates the experience of aging.”
A portion of the purchase price of “Art Therapy with Older Adults: Connected and Empowered” through Amazon Smile will be donated to Elder Care Alliance. The book also will be available through local booksellers.
Elder Care Alliance is a California-based nonprofit organization. Operating from both the mind and the heart, the Elder Care Alliance mission is to serve and enrich the holistic wellness of older adults and those who care for them through education, innovation and a network of professionals. Elder Care Alliance communities offer a variety of services, including assisted living, memory care, skilled nursing and independent living.
