Arts on Prescription for Older Adults: A Scoping Review

Arts on Prescription (AoP) programs, wherein a professional prescribes an art activity to a patient, are emerging worldwide as a healthcare strategy. However, less is known about whether AoP facilitates older adults' (OA) arts participation, AoP's benefits for them, and whether OA from disadvantaged backgrounds access AoP. To address these questions, we conducted a scoping review following PRISMA-ScR methodology. We generated keywords and searched PubMed, JSTOR, Proquest Psychology, Proquest Arts and Humanities, Ebsco Health and Nursing Database Family, Ebsco Complete Databases, and Google Scholar. We included articles and grey literature published between 2010 and 2025, in English, on OA and AoP, yielding 41 publications. We extracted data into a spreadsheet. Results indicated a lack of research on AoP among OA, especially in disadvantaged communities. Quantitative studies rarely used comparison or control groups. The results suggest that more rigorous research on AoP access and benefits among OA is needed, especially among marginalized/underserved groups.