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BAPAM’s return to performance series: physical health and injury prevention

11:00am – 1:00pm, Thursday 23rd Sep 2021

BAPAM’s Return to Performance Series – Physical Health and Injury Prevention Workshop with Drusilla Redman

Return to Performance Series

Physical Health and Injury Prevention

BAPAM deliver expert health and wellbeing services in the performing arts. Our events give artists, creators, technicians, teachers, and organisers the knowledge they need to improve health and enjoy sustainable careers.

As the largest provider of career-specific healthcare to performers in the UK, we are uniquely positioned to bring together expert clinicians, educators, researchers, artists and creators to deliver innovative training to empower the arts community to improve and maintain health throughout our creative work and learning spaces.

This introductory 2-hour session is designed for performing arts professionals and students and outlines risk factors and key strategies to maintain good physical health throughout a sustainable career and as we ease out of lockdown.

The session focuses on evidence-based practical skills and draws from research findings, performance experience, and proven clinical pathways.

Participants will learn how to avoid injury, identify the signs and symptoms of musculoskeletal problems, what to do to promote good health, and where to go for help.

Tutor: Drusilla Redman MSc BSc(Hons) MCSP

A farmer’s daughter from Suffolk, it was a strange child who decided to become a dancer at the age of five! Drusilla went to stage school at eleven and onto the Royal Ballet’s Senior School in Talgarth Road at sixteen. Having completed her training there, she decided to retire from dancing due to an early-onset arthritis in her feet, so completely understands not only the pressures of performing but also coping with pain and injury. She switched her focus and whilst teaching ballet to three to eleven-year-olds, trained as a physiotherapist at the mouse and cockroach infested Prince of Wales Hospital in Tottenham, sadly now demolished! Having worked in most physiotherapeutic areas, including sports injuries, orthopaedics, rheumatology, care of the elderly and the community – this century has been devoted to her primary passion – performers.

To date Drusilla is physiotherapist & lecturer, (course director for the under- and post-graduate course ‘Body Matters’), at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama and also holds clinics at BAPAM (British Association of Performing Arts Medicine) based in Chancery Lane.

She is passionate about the health of performers, lecturing at conservatoires and universities in an attempt to inspire musicians to think as much about their bodies as they do their instruments!

Hobbies, when she has a moment, include competitive tennis, needle work, decorating and relaxing with her cats!

Research looking at health issues within the performing arts workforce consistently finds that 70-75% of our population report both mental and physical health problems, which is much higher than the national average. We are lucky to be working with a number of health and wellbeing experts who can offer training to performers across the UK, with the aim of reducing the levels of poor health and supporting performers to have a sustainable career. Working with our partners in Equity, Musicians’ Union, Help Musicians UK and Performing Arts Education Providers – who are very kindly giving us free use of training venues – we are expanding our national training programme supporting healthy performance in the UK.