Artists in Healthcare

What Artists in Healthcare does

Artists in Healthcare Manitoba (AIHM) is a registered Canadian non-profit charitable organization founded in 1999 and headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It places professional and student musicians and visual artists inside healthcare facilities to deliver bedside live music, visual arts programs, and dance/movement therapy to patients, families, and staff. Core programs include Music Programs in Healthcare Facilities, Art at the Bedside, Art by the Big Blue Chair (CancerCare Manitoba), Dance/Movement Therapy at Deer Lodge Centre, the Art Donation Program for Healthcare Facilities, and the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra collaboration serving 13 healthcare organizations. Rural outreach, branded 'Taking the Music Rural', extends delivery from Winnipeg to Brandon and other communities, originally launched in fall 2009 with CancerCare Manitoba.

AIHM serves hospital patients (cancer, mental health, rehabilitation), long-term care residents including those with dementia, Indigenous health patients, youth in treatment, healthcare staff, and patient families. The organization is volunteer- and donor-funded; all programs are provided at no cost to healthcare facilities, patients, or families. Funding sources include The Winnipeg Foundation, The Gail Asper Family Foundation, The Asper Foundation, Johnston Group, Telus Future Friendly Foundation, Manitoba Arts Council, and Service Canada Summer Jobs. Auxiliary revenue comes from CD/album sales at local retailers. Administrative overhead is reportedly low, with 90% of program budgets directed to participating musicians in the MCO collaboration.

The organization is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors led operationally by Executive Director Shirley Grierson, with Shelley Young as Director of the Art at the Bedside program and Claire Stephensen as Coordinator. Long-serving Board Chair Tom Carson led the organization from 2006 until his passing in November 2022. Distribution is on-site at healthcare facilities, supplemented by a YouTube channel for virtual performances. The organization operates under Canadian non-profit governance and is incorporated/domiciled in Manitoba.

Name

Artists in Healthcare

Legal name

Artists in Healthcare Manitoba

Website

https://artistsinhealthcare.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Artists in Healthcare Manitoba is a Winnipeg-based non-profit founded in 1999 that delivers bedside live music, visual arts, and dance/movement therapy programs to patients, residents, and staff across hospitals and long-term care facilities in Manitoba, funded through donations and grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Arts-in-Healthcare Services

NAICS

Performing Arts Companies (7111), Musical Groups and Artists (71113)

akta.pro primary industry

Performing Arts Organizations (Theater, Dance, Opera, Music) (BPAGAHAB)

Keywords

• Arts in healthcare
• Music therapy programs
• Bedside art programs
• Healthcare community programs
• Nonprofit arts services

Headquarters

HQ city

Winnipeg

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grant Funding: AIHM operates as a charitable non-profit organization funded primarily through donations from individuals, family foundations, and corporate sponsors. Major funders include The Gail Asper Family Foundation, The Asper Foundation, The Winnipeg Foundation, Johnston Group, Telus Future Friendly Foundation, and Manitoba Arts Council. Funds support musician compensation, program supplies, and operational costs.
2. CD and Album Sales: The organization produces and sells music CDs featuring their musicians. Albums are sold at retail locations including McNally Robinson Grant Park, Winnipeg Folk Festival music store, and The Music Cellar Studio. CDs are also distributed free to patients and hospital staff.
3. Canada Summer Jobs Funding: Annual government funding through the Canada Summer Jobs program supports student musician positions during summer months. In 2015, AIHM received $5,034 to hire student musicians who perform for patients and residents in healthcare facilities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Artists in Healthcare Manitoba places professional and student musicians, visual artists, and dancers in hospitals, long-term care facilities, hospices, and youth treatment centres across Manitoba to deliver live music, bedside art, dance/movement therapy, and concert programming to patients, families, and staff at no cost. Programming is supplemented by an Art Donation Program distributing donated artwork to healthcare facilities, a Manitoba Chamber Orchestra concert collaboration, rural expansion into Brandon, and ancillary recorded music CD sales.

Product overview

Artists in Healthcare Manitoba is a nonprofit arts organization offering a portfolio of bedside arts programs across Manitoba healthcare facilities. Its core offerings include live music performances delivered by professional musicians in hospitals, long-term care homes, and hospices; visual arts programming through the Art at the Bedside and Art by the Big Blue Chair programs; and dance/movement therapy sessions. The organization also operates an Art Donation Program distributing donated artwork to healthcare facilities and collaborates with the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra on virtual and in-person concert series. Rural expansion programming extends services beyond Winnipeg to Brandon and other communities. These programs are funded through charitable donations, foundation grants, and government programs rather than being sold as a commercial product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Music Programs in Healthcare Facilities Live music performances delivered by professional and student musicians directly to patients, families, and staff in hospitals, long-term care facilities, and hospices across Manitoba, including CancerCare Manitoba, St. Boniface Hospital, Grace Hospital, Health Sciences Centre, Selkirk Mental Health Centre, and Misericordia Health Centre.
• Art at the Bedside Volunteer-based visual arts program delivered at hospital bedsides, inviting patients to engage in creative self-expression through materials and guided projects, with training and mentorship provided by professional artists at St. Boniface Hospital and Health Sciences Centre.
• Art by the Big Blue Chair (CancerCare Manitoba)
• Dance Movement Therapy (Dance @ Deer Lodge)
• Art Donation Program Program that collects and distributes donated artwork to healthcare facilities across Manitoba, enabling donors to receive charitable tax receipts while transforming clinical spaces with therapeutic art at Concordia, Deer Lodge, Grace Hospital, Misericordia, St. Boniface, and other partner sites.
• Manitoba Chamber Orchestra Concert Collaboration Concert series produced in collaboration with the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, bringing live classical and diverse musical performances (including Indigenous music programming at Selkirk Mental Health Centre) to healthcare patients and long-term care residents across Manitoba, funded by Johnston Group and The Winnipeg Foundation.
• AIHM CD / Recorded Music Studio recordings featuring AIHM musicians, with a full-length album of 15 musicians produced and distributed to patients, families, and hospital staff, available at local music retailers including McNally Robinson Grant Park, Winnipeg Folk Festival music store, and The Music Cellar Studio.

Quantifiable outcome

• Thousands of patients served annually through donor-funded arts programs
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Manitoba Chamber Orchestra (MCO)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 February 2019Collaboration to expand programming with the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra providing concert performances for seniors in long-term care, patients in hospitals and hospices, and mental health patients. Funded by Johnston Group and The Winnipeg Foundation. Musical styles range from classical to pop, with priority given to Indigenous music for Selkirk Mental Health Centre.
• CancerCare ManitobacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRural expansion program partner since fall 2009, bringing music programming to cancer patients in rural Manitoba.
• Long & McQuade MusicminorOthersEquipment support for Music to My Ears program, supporting musicians in recording a CD for patients, families, and staff.
• Cre8ive Art SuppliesminorOthersArt supply discount partner offering 20% off retail purchases and free reward points for art specialists working with Artists in Healthcare.
• Healthcare Facility FoundationscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple hospital foundations participate in Art Donation Program including Concordia Foundation, Deer Lodge Centre Foundation, Grace Hospital Foundation, Misericordia Health Centre Foundation, St. Boniface Hospital Foundation, and others who receive donated art.
• Simon Fraser University / Music HealsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWhile not a direct partner, AIHM shares research on music therapy for healthcare workers following a virtual pilot study launched by SFU and Music Heals regarding music therapy's effects on healthcare worker mental health.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Music Heals International: Canadian charitable organization funding and promoting music therapy and music-based healing programs; shares AIHM's Canadian context, health-focused mission, and grant-driven model.
• Healing HealthCare Systems: U.S.-based organization operating the C.A.R.E. Channel and other therapeutic music and visual arts programs delivered in hospitals — directly comparable hospital-arts mission.
• Musicians on Call: U.S. nonprofit that brings live and recorded music to hospital patients at the bedside — virtually identical operating model to AIHM, just U.S.-based and at much larger scale.

Emerging players

• Sound Health Network: Network created through NIH and Kennedy Center collaboration to expand music-based health research and programs; an emerging U.S. platform working at the intersection of music, neuroscience, and healthcare delivery.

Broad incumbents

• National Organization for Arts in Health: U.S. professional and advocacy body advancing arts-in-healthcare practice and policy; broader mandate (advocacy, training, research) rather than direct bedside programming like AIHM.
• Creative Forces: NEA Military Healing Arts Network: U.S. National Endowment for the Arts initiative funding arts programming for military and veteran healthcare populations; broader federally funded network covering a specific patient cohort rather than general healthcare.

Regional players

• Live Music Now: UK charity founded by Yehudi Menuhin bringing live music to healthcare, care, and community settings; comparable service model but operates in a different geography and serves a broader set of vulnerable populations.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/AIHManitoba

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Artists in Healthcare