Hush Foundation 2025-2030 Strategic Plan
To transform the culture and experience of healthcare through evidence-based, arts-led programs that support healing, connection, and care for all.
Restoring the humanity in healthcare — empowering people through the arts and kindness to create cultures of care where staff and patients thrive together.
A healthcare system where creativity, kindness, and clinical excellence work hand-in-hand – delivering care that is not only effective, but deeply human.
The Hush Foundation was established in 2000 by Professor Catherine Crock AM, with a vision to reduce anxiety and distress in healthcare settings through the power of music. By inviting composers and musicians into hospitals to experience clinical environments firsthand, Hush inspired the creation of original music that brings calm, connection, and comfort to patients, families, and staff. Since then, Hush has collaborated with over 150 Australian composers and performers to produce 22 albums of music conceived and created to complement clinical care and surrounding contexts across Australia and beyond.
Over time, Hush expanded into supporting positive cultures in healthcare more broadly, with a vision focussed on promoting and enabling cultures of kindness – through arts based education, dialogues and reflective practice. In 2010 Hush produced three Health Plays, developed with playwright Alan Hopgood AM. These theatre-based programs have been performed more than 200 times internationally, fostering open dialogue around staff behaviour, wellbeing, and safety.
In 2016, Hush launched the Gathering of Kindness – a national movement using music, theatre, visual art and storytelling to promote respect, empathy, and human connection in healthcare. This initiative has reached over 60,000 people and inspired the #KindnessWorksHere campaign and, more recently, Kindness in Action – an interactive, online reflective practice learning tool launched in 2024.
Hush celebrated 25 years in 2025, and reaffirmed its commitment to connection, kindness, and respect – ensuring continued advocacy and practical impact and relevance in transforming healthcare culture through the arts.
The Hush Foundation’s breadth of reach is a key strategic asset. It affirms the relevance and resonance of Hush’s mission across the healthcare ecosystem and creates multiple avenues for impact, collaboration, and advocacy. However, it also requires a considered approach to ensure focus is maintained on our core strength: the development and delivery of arts-based modalities that drive meaningful change.
To achieve this, the Hush Foundation must:
WHAT? Develop a clear, simplified, cohesive and consistently embedded narrative around Hush’s unique value proposition.
WHY? So that our audience – whoever they are, and however they engage with us or we engage with them – understand quickly who we are, what we do and what the value is to them by engaging with us.
HOW? (Year 1 – 2)
WHAT? Review markets and pursue strategic growth and scale of Hush assets, programs and services.
WHY? To ensure relevance, positive and real impact and maximise value for our audiences while building a sustainable income stream within.
HOW? (Year 1 – 2)
WHAT? Raise Hush profile to a broader audience.
WHY? Build awareness, buy-in, advocacy, reputation and reach with a view to positively influencing and achieving our purpose, vision and mission at scale.
HOW? (Year 1 – 2)
WHAT? Align funding efforts with the Hush value proposition and organisational capacity to diversify income streams and build long term financial sustainability.
WHY? Build our capacity to pursue all opportunities to elevate the power and impact of the arts without constraints of resource limitations / capacity and commercial / market forces in a resource poor, high need / opportunity sector.
HOW? (Year 1 – 2)
WHAT? Embed governance and operational processes to facilitate and underpin long term sustainability of the Hush Foundation.
WHY? Ensure a professional, efficient and responsible use of resources.
HOW? (Year 1 – 2)
The Hush Foundation
PO Box 1385
Camberwell, VIC, 3124
A Deductible Gift Recipient 1 charity
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ABN 751 380 88972
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We acknowledge the traditional owners and custodians of the lands on which we live and work and pay our respects to Indigenous Elders past, present and emerging.
Incorporating the Australian Institute of Patient and Family Centred Care.
© 2025 The Hush Foundation