During a rehearsal for the Division of Theater’s main-stage production of Metamorphoses, second-year graduate actor Mbali Guliwe slipped on the deck of the pool used in the show and hit his head.
“Luckily, when I fell, the SHAPe on-call team was there, so they attended to me, said I should go to the hospital and an assistant stayed with me when I was transferred to Columbus,” Guliwe said. “I’m really blessed they were there that night.”
Guliwe is one of many performing artists who have been treated by a member of the SHAPe team. The SHAPe Clinic — which stands for Science and Health in Artistic Performance — opened its doors at Putnam 304 to injured performing artists at the beginning of Fall Semester after a year’s worth of planning.
Director Jeff Russell, assistant professor of athletic training, was hired in 2012 to coordinate the program. One of his main focuses was in applying for the 1804 Fund so he could achieve his triadic plan to address clinical care, research and education in this project.
The 1804 Fund is split into two sections: undergraduate learning, and faculty research and graduate studies. Undergraduate learning focuses on enhancing the experience of the student while the faculty and graduate section is geared toward research projects.
The SHAPe proposal was a joint proposal and was reviewed by both committees. The project was awarded $63,083 from the faculty and graduate section and $18,000 from the undergraduate learning section, fully funding the project with a total of $81,083.
Russell said the money went toward the supplies and equipment in the clinic and a stipend for the graduate assistant athletic trainers.
“It was one of the rare proposals that everyone around the table really understood what they were trying to accomplish and thought what they were trying to accomplish was worthwhile,” said Roxanne Malé-Brune, director of grant development in the Office of Research, who helps coordinate the faculty and graduate section of the 1804 Fund.
At the end of its first six weeks, the clinic had cared for 125 patients in dance, theater, music and the Marching 110. Much of the treatment is for long-term injuries such as back, hand or forearm and lower extremity injuries. The clinic does, however, treat acute injuries, such as sprains and strains.
“There is no question that performing artists are incredibly physical in what they do … even if it is something artistic,” Russell said. “It’s physically rigorous. … They are underserved by the medical profession. They need to have specialized care for their specialized performance, just like basketball players.”
The therapy is tailored to the artists, and the clinic has special equipment like a keyboard and a ballet barre for treatment.
A team of graduate athletic trainers and undergraduate students create the individualized treatment plans for the artists.
“Understanding where the (artists) come from is probably one of the best things we can do from the start,” said Kandis Maust, a first-year graduate assistant athletic trainer at SHAPe. “Then we can figure out (how to) get them back on stage.”
All of the services performing artists receive at the clinic are of no cost to them and there is no insurance needed.
The facility is a collaboration between the College of Fine Arts — home to all of the performing artists — and the College of Health Sciences and Professions, home of the athletic training program.
“You don’t normally think of science and art working together, but we very much believe in that, and it’s happening,” Russell said.
But it’s not happening quite like this on any other campus in the nation. Russell said he could not name any other facility that was devoted to clinical care for all performing artists, not just dancers.
“It sets us apart from every other university,” said Gail Berenson, professor of piano and a supporter of the SHAPe Clinic. “It shows how much we care about the health and well being of our students.”
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