Health Museum Model

The modern landscape in which museums operate – one of limited funding, changing demographics, and shifting values – has increasingly pushed museums to reevaluate their role in society and the service they must provide in order to stay relevant. While many new skills and ways of thinking are required to establish the current and future relevancy of museums, perhaps the “most important new skill of all will be the ability to envision how the community’s ongoing and/or emerging needs in all their dimensions – physical, psychological, economic, and social – might potentially be served by the museum’s very particular competencies.” One effective method of envisioning the ways in which a museum can serve its communities is to create a model of

The Health Museum’s mission statement does an excellent job of establishing their distinct role in society, stating that they function to “foster wonder and curiosity about health, medical sciences, and the human body.” They then build on their mission statement by boldly claiming their vision to “counteract the rapidly rising costs of managing health” and “address health inequities within the framework of exploring what it means to be human .” While many museums across the country have begun to deal with health issues, the Health Museum is one of only five museums listed in American Alliance of Museum’s report on museums that have addressed public health. It is not surprising, then, that their core values include “uniqueness” and “function.” They are one of the only museums of their kind, proudly serving more than 180,000 visitors each year. Overall, their policy framework allows staff to address the often taboo subject of health as well as the surrounding social issues of health inequities without fear of controversy that may rise from

The mission statement should attempt to meet as many of the following characteristics as possible: meaningful, jargon-free, clear, concise, memorable, broad, durable, challenging, and distinctive. The previous museums captured many of these characteristics, but they were certainly not as concise or memorable as the policy statements held by the MAH. Having a quick, well worded mission statement that staff, volunteers, and board members can easily recite assists the museum in building a “genuine, shared vision held by everyone.” The MAH mission “to ignite shared experiences and unexpected connections” is succinctly stated in just ten words. The broadness allows them to focus on creating connections without limitations, even if an exhibit includes controversial subject matter or if a program is not deemed as a traditional museum activity. However, their vision statement adds focus to the mission, asserting that they aspire “to become a thriving, central gathering place where local residents and visitors have the opportunity to experience art, history, ideas, and culture.” Combined, the two statements have the power of a memorable mission as well as a defined, local vision that distinguishes them from other museums that have similar goals. The museum has an equally powerful impact statement that explains to