Gold Coast Health is recognised for quality patient care, nursing and midwifery excellence and innovations in professional nursing and midwifery practice under the Magnet® Recognition Program.
"Walking together in kindness" artwork produced for Gold Coast Health by Riki Salam, We are 27 Creative.
A photograph can do more than capture a moment. In the right setting, it can offer comfort, spark memories, reduce stress, and provide a welcome pause when it’s needed most.
Across Gold Coast Health’s facilities, local photographer Jon Wright's evocative coastal images are helping do exactly that.
Installed in patient and clinical areas including the Renal Ward, Acute Cognitive and Acute Geriatric Ward at Robina Hospital, and the Acute Cognitive Unit at Gold Coast University Hospital, his photographs bring the serenity of the natural world into healthcare spaces, creating moments of calm for those who need them most.
While Jon's interest in photography stretches back to childhood when his father gifted him a toy Kodak camera, it wasn't until a life-changing accident that the medium became central to his life. After a serious surfing accident left him with multiple spinal fractures and a lengthy rehabilitation, photography became both a creative outlet and a source of purpose.
"During my recovery, which was a very long time - roughly 12 months of physio and a big change in lifestyle - I thought to myself, well, I have all this time now, life's too short. I wanted to get into a hobby. It was either learn to play guitar or pick up photography. I think you know which one I chose," he says.
What began as a means of recovery, gradually evolved into a deeply personal artistic practice. Through his lens, Jon captures the beauty and movement of coastal environments, inviting viewers to pause and experience familiar landscapes from a different perspective.
"There's so much on offer in South East Queensland, but for me, I absolutely love capturing the ocean and its ever-changing moods, from empty wave shots inside the barrel to the raw power of waves crashing," he says. "I also love finding nature, whales, dolphins and turtles to name a few. The surf and ocean is certainly where you'll find me most of the time."
His photographs now play an important role within healthcare environments. Research shows that access to nature-based imagery can support wellbeing, reduce stress, and positively influence the healthcare experience for patients, visitors and staff.
For many people navigating illness, uncertainty, recovery, or long days at work, a photograph can offer a brief but meaningful moment of escape.
Walking through the wards and corridors where his photographs now reside, Jon was able to experience the environments in which patients and staff encounter his work each day.
"Honestly, this is really special to me. It's a full circle moment," he says. "I remember being in hospital myself. To be able to give people a moment to daydream, a bit of respite from their current situation, or take them to a special location or spot, even just in their mind, is extremely powerful."
"I hope it gives people a small escape, even just for a moment," he says. "Whether you're a patient, a visitor, or staff walking past on a twelve-hour shift, I want the image to take you somewhere else, back to a beach you love, a memory with family, or just a sense of calm when you need it most."
For Jon, photography remains closely connected to his own wellbeing journey. What began during a period of personal challenge has become both a profession and a way of contributing positively to the lives of others.
"At first, it was a way to take my mind off my situation and give me something to look forward to," he says. "These days it really does feel like I'm doing what I'm meant to be doing."
As Gold Coast Health continues to embed arts and creativity into healthcare environments, artists like Jon demonstrate the powerful role art can play in supporting health, wellbeing and recovery.
