Making the ER less traumatic for children

Five murals decorate the ER and trauma center at Saint

Francis Medical Center

By Samantha Kluesner

Scott County Signal

The artwork of Elizabeth Sikes-Richter now is on permanent display at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. Sikes-Richter, who grew up in Morley, attended Southeast Missouri State University. After graduation she moved to Louisville, Ky., where she taught art in middle and elementary schools for three years before deciding to leave education to become more involved in the art scene.

The emergency and trauma center at Saint Francis Medical Center features special examination rooms and equipment to treat children. The walls are painted in a bright and cheerful theme with five murals by Sikes-Richter.

Q: How did you become interested in art?

A: My dad taught me to draw as a little child, and it became a passion and outlet through my teens. I played with any medium I could get my hands on. I started at Southeast Missouri State University as an advertising major; my first art class was drawing I in college and I was so intimidated. With encouragement from the art department, my junior year I decided to change majors and focus on art education. Art was all I had ever wanted to study.

Q: Since leaving the education field, what do you do now?

A: I now work as an artist-in-residence for the Kentucky Museum of Arts and Crafts, where I get to visit local schools to demonstrate and work with students on special projects. I also run a small Etsy shop, contract commissioned artwork, illustrations and murals, teach private art lessons, consign artwork in local boutiques and blog about Louisville. I also recently did work for the Forecastle music festival, including live painting.

Q: How did you hear about the mural project at Saint Francis Medical Center and what is the focus of the project?

A: My sister told me they were looking for someone and I got in contact with Barbara Thompson and showed her some examples of former murals. The idea to do murals was to launch a new focus on children in the ER, with the purpose of helping children feel comfortable and less afraid, and to distract and amuse them while they are there. The marketing team at Saint Francis had a graphic of the Saint Francis lamb from their new children's campaign on a polka dot background similar to the polka dot grass, and they liked the idea of murals with themed rooms, specifically circus, farm, apple orchard, space and ocean.

Q: What was your inspiration for the murals?

A: I came up with the idea of the Saint Francis lamb visiting each location, like a story book. I found images to inspire me and created sketches of the plants, animals and landscapes that I liked together into the scenes. I was inspired by midcentury illustrations and chose a fresh, uniting color scheme to help them be congruent and modern.

Q: How do you feel these paintings will help children coming into the emergency room?

A: I noticed with visitors coming into the rooms their faces immediately light up. By making the murals encompass several walls, I tried to give the bed a panoramic view of soft, pleasing scenes with details a child would notice, like a tiny clown in a hot-air balloon. The concept was to give parents and nurses something to point out to children that might distract them when they are in pain, like "Can you count the apples on the tree?" or "Can you find the turtle?" It seems like children and adults alike were drawn to the paintings; I had so many people come in to watch. It was interesting seeing how joyful the colors and simple shapes made them. It's just a happy style. The nurses and staff were incredibly supportive and excited about the changes. I hope the rooms will make the emergency room experience less traumatic and make children feel special -- that there is a place just for them.