NYC Health + Hospitals and Juilliard Extension Launch Harmonizing for Health Program to Address Health Care Provider Burnout
The pilot program will offer NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue staff time for music, dialogue, and personal reflection during the work day Builds on other workforce wellness programs, including the art observation program HHArt of Medicine
Oct 23, 2025
New York, NY — NYC Health + Hospitals’ Arts in Medicine department and Juilliard Extension today announced a new collaboration to launch Harmonizing for Health, an observational music program for health care providers to help combat staff burnout and compassion fatigue. Led by faculty and musicians from Juilliard Extension, workshops will offer time for music, dialogue, and personal reflection during the workday. The pilot program will support about fifty hospital employees at NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue over several months. Researchers from the Yale School of Public Health will assess whether the intervention effectively addresses staff burnout and could contribute to retention. Harmonizing for Health is funded by the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund.
A large body of scientific research has shown that music can have a profound effect on our health. Music reduces symptoms of depression, supports pain management, provides a safe environment to contribute to healing from trauma, and builds resilience while decreasing anxiety and blood pressure. Music improves our sleep quality, mental alertness, memory, and overall health and well-being.
“Music has the power to shift a mood, open the heart, and help us process what words often can’t,” said Laurie M. Tisch, founder and president of the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund. “Harmonizing for Health gives staff space to pause, decompress, and reconnect with what grounds them and brings them joy. We are proud to support this collaboration between NYC Health + Hospitals and Juilliard Extension to make music a source of strength for those on the front lines of care.”
“It is an honor for Arts in Medicine to collaborate with Juilliard Extension on this innovative initiative, which brings in the deep evidence base for music into the daily lives of our healthcare professionals,” said NYC Health + Hospitals Assistant Vice President of Arts in Medicine Larissa Trinder. “In a field where compassion and emotional resilience are paramount, the Harmonizing for Health program offers our staff a unique opportunity for reflection, creative expression, and renewal. The involvement of researchers from the Yale School of Public Health ensures a rigorous evaluation of the program’s impact, reinforcing our commitment to evidence-based approaches that nurture the mental and emotional well-being of those who provide care. Together, we are fostering a more sustainable, compassionate healthcare environment—one that supports both patients and the dedicated professionals who serve them.”
“We are excited to launch Harmonizing for Health here at Bellevue Hospital in collaboration with Juilliard Extension,” said NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue Chief Executive Officer Eric Wei, MD, MBA. “We are deeply committed to strengthening the psychological safety and wellness of our staff. Studies have shown the healing power of the arts, and especially music’s ability to reduce stress and improve overall well-being. This new partnership, spearheaded by the Arts in Medicine department, with the visionary support of the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund, Juilliard, and the Yale School of Public Health builds on our hospital’s almost 300-year history of innovation and care for all New Yorkers.”
“The arts have a unique power to foster resilience, empathy, and human connection. Through Harmonizing for Health, it is an honor to leverage the creative practices of our faculty and artists in support of those who care for the health of our communities,” said Juilliard President Damian Woetzel. “I am profoundly grateful to our partners at NYC Health + Hospitals, Yale School of Public Health, and the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund for making this initiative possible and for their visionary commitment to the intersection of the arts and well-being.”
“At Juilliard Extension, we believe in the transformative power of the performing arts not only to inspire audiences but also to sustain those who give so much of themselves in the service of others,” said John-Morgan Bush, Dean of Juilliard Extension. “Harmonizing for Health brings the restorative force of music into the workday of New York’s health care providers, creating space for reflection, connection, and renewal. The involvement of the Yale School of Public Health underscores the importance of evaluating how artistic interventions can contribute to resilience and long-term workforce well-being. It is a privilege to collaborate with NYC Health + Hospitals and the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund to support the well-being of those who care for our city every day.”
“It is a tremendous honor to be working with such a dynamic and accomplished team to implement and evaluate the role of arts-based programming to improve the wellbeing of care providers and staff at NYC Health + Hospitals,” said Judith Lichtman, PhD, MPH, FAHA, Susan Dwight Bliss Professor at the Yale School of Public Health. “We look forward to contributing to the evaluation of the program to provide data and insights about the added value of employing innovative and creative programming to address important issues related to resiliency and life balance for hospital workers.”
In 2022, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported that nearly half of health workers said they felt burned out and recently stated that there is a bourgeoning mental health crisis for healthcare workers. The Physicians Foundation found that over 76% of physicians, residents, and medical students agree that physician mental health stigma still exists. Arts in Medicine programming decreases stress, anxiety, feelings of being depressed while addressing compassion fatigue, burnout, and increase positive mood and cognitive alertness.
Arts in Medicine’s other suite of programming includes: The HHArt of Medicine program, an art observation strategy to address burnout and deepen empathy; Artists in Residence; Music for the Soul concerts; a growing Community Mural program; and exhibitions and installations of works from their historic art collection.
NYC Health + Hospitals has invested in workforce wellness through several initiatives, including:
- The Helping Healers Heal (H3) program, which include licensed mental health practitioners and other behavioral health experts to help employees identify and monitor distress, assist in resilience-building, and aid the use of recovery and coping support services.
- 20 Wellness Rooms across the health system where staff can decompress during the workday and access wellness programming.
- The Employee Assistance Program, where staff can seek outside professional mental health services.
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About NYC Health + Hospitals’ Arts in Medicine Department
The Arts in Medicine Department at NYC Health + Hospitals serves as a strategic initiative to integrate the arts into public healthcare delivery across the nation’s largest municipal health system. Through programming in music, literary, visual, and performing arts, the department enhances the clinical environment and supports the emotional and psychological well-being of patients, families, staff, and communities.
The department oversees one of the most extensive non-museum public hospital art collections in the United States and its “Curating for health” strategy refers to the intentional integration of visual art and exhibitions into healthcare environments to enhance patient outcomes and staff well-being. It positions the arts not as ancillary, but as essential to a holistic model of care. Its work is grounded in evidence-based research demonstrating the therapeutic value of the arts in promoting recovery, resilience, and patient engagement.
By embedding creative practice into the continuum of care, Arts in Medicine reinforces NYC Health + Hospitals’ commitment to holistic, equitable, and culturally responsive healthcare. The department also fosters interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation, positioning the arts as a vital component of modern health systems.
For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org/artsinmedicine.
About NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue
NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue is America’s oldest public hospital, established in 1736. Affiliated with the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, the 851-bed hospital is a major referral center for highly complex cases, with 6,000 employees including highly skilled, interdisciplinary clinical staff. The hospital is a Level 1 Trauma Center and annually it sees about 103,000 emergency room visits, and more than 520,000 outpatient visits. Clinical centers of excellence include: Emergency Medicine and Trauma Care; Cardiovascular Services; Bariatric Surgery; Designated Regional Perinatal Center and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit; Children’s Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program; and Cancer Services. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org/bellevue and follow us on Facebook and X (Twitter).
About NYC Health + Hospitals
NYC Health + Hospitals is the largest public health care system in the nation serving more than a million New Yorkers annually in more than 70 patient care locations across the city’s five boroughs. A robust network of outpatient, neighborhood-based primary and specialty care centers anchors care coordination with the system’s trauma centers, nursing homes, post-acute care centers, home care agency, and MetroPlus health plan—all supported by 11 essential hospitals. Its diverse workforce of more than 43,000 employees is uniquely focused on empowering New Yorkers, without exception, to live the healthiest life possible. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org and stay connected on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
About the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund
The Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund is a New York City-based foundation that aims to improve access and opportunity for all New Yorkers and foster healthy and vibrant communities. In 2018, the Illumination Fund launched Arts in Health, a multi-year initiative to support organizations utilizing the arts as a tool for healing and building understanding in communities across New York City. The initiative’s areas of focus are stigma, trauma and aging-related diseases as well as supporting organizations addressing mental health in communities disproportionately affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2019 the Illumination Fund supported the creation of NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine department, expanding programs serving health care staff, patients, and communities in sites across the City. For more information, visit www.lmtif.org or follow @LMTischFund on Twitter.
About Juilliard Extension
Juilliard Extension is The Juilliard School’s flagship continuing education program and serves as a place of creativity, innovation, and boundless opportunity for participating in the performing arts. No matter a student’s background, age, ability, or location, Juilliard Extension invites everyone to take part in this vibrant community of experts and enthusiasts from all walks of life.
Juilliard’s non-matriculated continuing education program began in 1905, when music lessons were first offered to qualified students through the Extension program at the Institute of Musical Arts, which later became The Juilliard School. The program grew and in 1933 became the Extension Division before being renamed as the Evening Division in 1989. In 2021, the program returned to its original name, and is once again known as Juilliard Extension. Today, over 1,400 students enroll each semester in courses taught by Juilliard’s distinguished faculty of performers, creators, and scholars. Juilliard Extension offers a wealth of opportunities to advance technical and professional skills, earn college credit, and broaden an individual’s horizons in the performing arts. For more information visit www.juilliard.edu/extension.