%0 Journal Article %A O’Connor, Alison %T The work hurts %D 2022 %J Journal of Applied Arts & Health, %V 13 %N 2 %P 153-166 %@ 2040-2465 %R https://doi.org/10.1386/jaah_00096_1 %K participatory artist %K reflective practice %K support %K arts in health %K burnout %K supervision %K well-being %I Intellect, %X This study aimed to explore the emotional impact on arts practitioners of working in health, social care and participatory settings and how supervision, or lack of, affects artists’ well-being. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was chosen to explore the lived experiences of artists working in this field. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five artists working across the arts and health spectrum, in a range of settings including children’s hospitals, hospices, prisons, older adults and rehabilitation wards. These interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using IPA. Four super-ordinate themes emerged from the analysis: this work as a calling; the psychological impact of the work; managing the impact through supervision and support; sustaining the professional and the personal self. %U https://intellectdiscover.com/content/journals/10.1386/jaah_00096_1