Once a week, the typically quiet, tense Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Shands at UF receives a mood lift, proving that art does wonders for the mind, body and soul.
While working to earn a certificate from the Center for the Arts in Medicine at UF, Emily Pozek’s assignment to create a mock volunteer plan escalated into an organization known as Little Dreamers, where she and 2005 UF journalism alumna Danielle DeCosmo sing to the babies and stretch with the parents and nurses.
Pozek, a 24-year-old dance senior, took her interest in what the arts can do for health and applied it to her project, coming up with the idea to sing lullabies to babies in the NICU. After pairing up with DeCosmo, 29, the Musician in Residence at Shands, Pozek’s proposal came to life in July. As DeCosmo goes to each bedside with her mandolin, singing nontraditional lullabies like “Somewhere over the Rainbow,” Pozek leads a quick and easy stretch for stressed out parents who spend most of their time hovering and worrying.
“It really does a lot,” Pozek said. “They’re in really stressful situations — imagine having a sick baby. We found that providing a little bit of music and relaxation in the unit can be transformative.”
In some situations, mothers have not been able to hold their babies since birth because they’re in an enclosed incubator. When Pozek and DeCosmo come around, the nurses open the incubators so the babies can hear the music, covering up the beeping of the machines and allowing the mothers to touch their children.
“It’s very special because they’re sharing this moment,” DeCosmo said. “It’s not just music for the babies. It’s more this whole community and family feeling. [Parents] are able to hold their baby while this music is going on — something they can’t do throughout the day.”
Pozek thought to record a CD to give to families and nurses to de-stress at home. After receiving donations from family and friends, she raised enough money for DeCosmo to record seven of their most requested songs, plus a guided stretch on the eighth track that Pozek wrote.
With their long shifts, the nurses look forward to the stretching as well.
“I absolutely love it,” Registered Nurse Dale Franquemont said. “I’ve never heard one problem, except that they make us cry.”
On Feb. 24, Pozek and DeCosmo are holding a fundraiser at Sweet Dreams Ice Cream to create a continuous fund to supply CDs and prepare for the possibility of expanding Little Dreamers throughout Shands and other hospitals.
“It’s a beneficial experience for everyone involved,” Pozek said. “By working through Shands Arts and Medicine, I’ve been able to create a really unique path for myself. I’m enjoying being able to use what I’ve done for years to benefit other people. It shaped my future.”
