Context / probleemstelling of aanleiding

Context/probleemstelling of aanleiding:
Theatre-based educational interventions have been successfully used to strengthen empathy and communication skills of healthcare professionals (Mazi et al., 2025). Theatre help audience members understand the experience of illness and can provide new ways to think about healthcare situations (Shapiro & Hunt, 2003). In addition, theatre productions can reduce anxiety and stress in both patients and healthcare professionals. A mixed audience can furthermore be beneficial for patients, healthcare providers and students, especially if the emotions and opinions of these audience members are elicited during a facilitated dialogue after a performance (Shapiro & Hunt, 2003).
Our project aims to study the effects of professional theatre performances as educational interventions at the University Medical Center Utrecht. Existing research has focused primarily on effects measured immediately after a theatre performance; we also want to explore the effect over a longer period. Our study also considers the effects of having a mixed audience present—in this case patients/carers, students, and healthcare professionals—at the performance and facilitated dialogue.
Beschrijving van de interventie/innovatie:
Our primary objective is to gain more insight in the benefits students experience from attending theatre performances about healthcare-related topics together with patients, carers, and healthcare professionals. In the academic year 2025-2026 we will host performances of the theatrical productions ‘Broos’, ‘Hey Mister Parkinson’ and ‘Borst Vooruit’ at the UMCU. We will use four data collection strategies after each of the performances. I) Fieldnotes from the facilitated dialogue after each performance; II) Written reflections from audience members that are collected in the form of ‘question flashcards’ after each performance; III) A follow-up questionnaire one week after the theatre performance; and IV) A short telephone interview one month after the performance.
Ervaringen/analyse van de implementatie:
As the performances have not all occurred at the time of writing, we can currently only report our anecdotal experiences. In the spring we will have conducted qualitative analyses of the collected data and will be able to give a nuanced picture of the impact of the theatre performances on students. During our presentation we intend to discuss the most relevant themes from the dataset analyses; we will also reflect on the implications for the UMC Utrecht medical curriculum and other programs in the Netherlands.
Lessons learned (implicaties voor de praktijk):
Our foundational hypothesis when starting this project was that theatre interventions were optimally suited to revealing patient perspectives and fostering transformative learning experiences. In the audience discussions and in the reflection flashcards we’ve collected to date, it’s noticeable that participants value precisely the mixed public. Multiple participants have also reported that the perspective of carers and family members deserves more attention—evidence that the theatre productions are an effective means of revealing the networks around a patient.
Organizing a professional theatre production series in a UMC requires a significant time and energy investment. Structural financing is essential, as are dedicated spaces that can accommodate a professional production. For those interested in making theatre part of the standard medical curriculum, we suggest also programming a group discussion into the curriculum to guarantee students can reflect on the theatre production themes in relation to their professional and personal development with their peers after the production.
Referenties (max. 2):
Mazi, T., & Adembri, C., Vignozzi, L., Innocenti, B., Cruciata, M.A., & Lippi, D. (2025). Medicine at theatre: A tool for well-being and healthcare education. <i>BMC Medical Education, 25</i>, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-025-06793-9
Shapiro, J., & Hunt, L. (2003). All the world’s stage: The use of theatrical performance in medical education. Arts & Humanities, 37, 922-927. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2923.2003.01634.x