Culture and Health - Voluntary work as a form of care

The fifth lecture of the 2025 Culture and Health course – Doctors and Social Prescribing. Healing through sport, nature, culture and volunteering – will take place on Monday, November 10, from 6:00 to 7:45 p.m., at the Aula Polivalente, East Campus, Lugano.

The therapeutic value of voluntary work will be the focal point of the lesson by Bev Taylor, former consultant for the British NHS and vastly experienced in social prescribing and community development, and following her there will be an analysis by Prof. Stephen Post (Stony Brook University, New York), expert in the relationship between altruism and health.
Voluntary work is recognised as a precious resource for individual and collective wellbeing. It takes multiple forms: from assisting the elderly to providing support in community centres, libraries or animal refuges. With over 3000 supporting pieces of literature, voluntary work is associated with significant benefits in terms of mental health, personal fulfilment and social cohesion. Bev Taylor will examine the scientific evidence of these positive effects, while Prof. Post, in the role of discussant, will explore its mechanisms in light of the most recent international studies.

Full programme: www.culturaesalute.ch – IBSA Foundation