Al-Amn Magazine

CREATIVITY W Hea l t h i ntersect i on I t ’ s not on l y abou t phys i ca l and ment a l we l l -bei ng hen we think of healthcare, most of us picture sterile waiting rooms, even more soulless tri-fold pamphlets, and people in white coats who actually succeeded in passing an organic chemistry course. At first glance, it feels like a cold, objective world untouched by creativity. At second glance, maybe our view of both healthcare and creativity is simply too narrow. Health today isn’t just about physical health and the prescriptions and procedures that treat it. It now also includes our mental, emotional, and environmental health and how they all intersect. Yet, despite leaps in medical research, too many people still don’t get the care they need. That’s because many of healthcare’s biggest shortcomings aren’t scientific, but social. The solutions exist. But they’re often blocked by money, stigma, or misinformation. When medicine can’t bridge that gap, could creativity? Yes, in a field known for logic and precision, the power of creativity might sound silly. But it’s really about seeing problems with fresh eyes and a healthy disrespect for the status quo. Done well, creative work in healthcare empowers. It connects. It makes us stop and say, ‘duh, why didn’t we do this before?’ Here are four campaigns that do just that. Each one uses creativity not as decoration, but as a tool to close the gap between cures and communities. Anzen Health Every six minutes, someone dies from opioid overdose in the US. Though difficult, there are in fact lots of paths to recovery – it’s not a one-rehab-fits- all like we’re sometimes led to believe. But we need to meet people where they are and show that it’s possible in the first place. Now, opioid pills in the US have unique imprint codes. So, Anzen Health created a helpline that uses those codes as phone extensions. When someone calls 855-HOW-TO-QUIT and enters the code, they’re connected to someone who overcame their addiction to that exact pill. This is effective because peer-to-peer support has been proven to increase recovery success by 26%, and this service brings that support right to the person’s hand, at their most vulnerable moment. The stories are personalized, the support is real, and the timing is everything. Claritin Can’t enjoy a spring day without a steady supply of tissues? City planners have long planted male trees because they don’t drop fruit, but unfortunately, they release huge amounts of pollen, worsening allergies across the US. Claritin decided to prevent the problem, not just treat the symptoms. In 2024, they launched the DiversiTree Project: a campaign to plant more female trees, which absorb pollen instead of releasing it. The effort included a partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation to give free (female) trees to allergy sufferers, a study with Cornell University, and a push to get the USDA to revise its recommendations to city planners. That it came from a brand that profits from allergies makes it even more refreshing. Sometimes, solving the problem is just about pointing out the obvious. CoorDown This next idea calls on society to rethink how it supports disabled people. Non-profit CoorDown’s