scholarly journals Choosing the Right Interpreter: Reflections on My Experience

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Melody Schwantes
Keyword(s):  
Music Therapy ◽  
Personal Experience ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
The Right

Music therapists are now frequently working outside of their own cultures with individuals who may speak a different language from them. While music can be one vehicle of connecting and communicating with clients, oftentimes an interpreter is still necessary. This article presents an overview of my personal experience working with interpreters in various settings. Benefits and challenges of working with an interpreter are discussed as well as recommendations for working with interpreters. It is hoped that this article will create a dialogue among the Voices community about working with interpreters in the music therapy setting.Keywords: music therapy, interpreter, relationships

scholarly journals Music Therapy Through Irish Eyes: A Student Therapist’s Experience of Irish Traditional Music

2008 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruth Armstrong
Keyword(s):  
Music Therapy ◽  
Group Work ◽  
Personal Experience ◽  
Traditional Music ◽  
Social Aspects ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Irish Music ◽  
Physical Response ◽  
Irish Traditional Music ◽  
Movement Activities

This article outlines my personal experience of Irish traditional music and considers how it can inform music therapy practice. The use of Irish music may be particularly meaningful for some clients and help them connect with their culture and identity. Music therapy can also draw on specific features; including the melodic, rhythmic and social aspects of the music. The melody is prominent in Irish traditional music, and its expression is very important. The word draíoght (meaning "spell" or "enchantment") is used to describe this expressivity. Music therapists can aspire to capture this quality in the music they create with their clients. Often the rhythm of dance tunes elicits a physical response, so these tunes could be used in movement activities. The relaxed and informal style of playing in sessions provides an atmosphere where the music can grow out of the interactions between players. An attempt to create a similar atmosphere may facilitate creativity and spontaneity in group work. While this article only presents a few ways in which Irish traditional music can influence music therapy practice, it is hoped that readers will be inspired to seek their own ways of relating Irish music to music therapy.

Ethical Issues in Private Practice: A Phenomenological Investigation of Music Therapy Business Owners

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle Wilhelm ◽  
Lindsey Wilhelm
Keyword(s):  
Music Therapy ◽  
Private Practice ◽  
Phenomenological Study ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Ethical Dilemmas ◽  
The United States ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Music Therapists

Abstract As a music therapy private practice is both a business and a healthcare service, it should adhere to ethical standards from both disciplines. However, this topic has rarely been examined in the music therapy literature. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore ethical dilemmas experienced by music therapy business owners (MTBOs) in their private practice and how MTBOs avoid or address ethical dilemmas. Utilizing convenience and snowball sampling techniques, 21 MTBOs in the United States were interviewed using semi-structured interviews. To answer the two areas of inquiry, we identified three themes and 12 subthemes: (1) Ethical issues related to client welfare, (2) Ethical issues related to business relationships and operation, and (3) Strategies to address or avoid ethical dilemmas. MTBOs also shared how they ensure ethical behavior in themselves, with their employees or independent contractors, and when interacting with professionals outside the private practice. These findings provide a better understanding of MTBOs’ lived experiences of ethics in their private practice and may benefit other music therapists who are in private practice or are wanting to go into private practice. Limitations and recommendations for further research are provided.

A Descriptive Analysis of Music Therapy Employment from 2013 to 2019

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathon Oden
Keyword(s):  
Music Therapy ◽  
Descriptive Analysis ◽  
American Music ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Funding Sources ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Therapy Services

Abstract The purpose of this study was to descriptively analyze music therapy employment data from 2013 to 2019, including years in the field, gender, age, ethnicity, hours worked, jobs created, number of new board-certified music therapists (MT-BCs), funding sources, and wages. A database was created to analyze descriptive data from the 2013–2019 American Music Therapy Association Workforce Analysis Surveys as well as data from the Certification Board for Music Therapists. Results indicate a large portion of music therapists (MTs) have been in the field for five years or less. Though the majority of MTs work full time, there is a high rate of part-time employment. An estimate of the total number of new full-time jobs represented a ratio of 57% of new MT-BCs during the period. Private pay was the most reported funding source for music therapy services. Music therapy wages tended to be higher for those with higher levels of education. Limitations of the study and suggestions for future research are provided.

scholarly journals Adaptation of Music Therapists’ Practice to the Outset of the COVID-19 Pandemic—Going Virtual: A Scoping Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (10) ◽  
pp. 5138
Author(s):  
Lucia Kantorova ◽  
Jiří Kantor ◽  
Barbora Hořejší ◽  
Avi Gilboa ◽  
Zuzana Svobodova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Music Therapy ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Professional Organizations ◽  
Residential Home ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Therapeutic Goals ◽  
Scoping Reviews ◽  
Online Music ◽  
The Hours ◽  
Online Therapies

Background: In the midst of a worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, music therapists previously not involved in telehealth had to develop effective remote forms of music therapy. The objective of this review was to systematically explore how music therapists previously working in-person adapted to the transfer to remote forms of therapy in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. Methods: We searched Scopus, Web of Science Core Collection, CINAHL, Medline, ProQuest Central, PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO and PsyARTICLES, grey literature (to October 2020), and websites of professional organizations. We followed the JBI methodology for scoping reviews. Results: Out of the 194 screened texts, we included ten very heterogeneous articles with an overall very low quality. Most texts described remote therapy in the form of synchronous video calls using the Internet, one paper described a concert in a patio of a residential home. We report the authors’ experience with the adaptation and activities, challenges and benefits of remote forms of therapy, recommendations of organizations, and examples and tips for online therapies. Conclusions: Music therapists have adapted the musical instruments, the hours, the technology used, the therapeutic goals, the way they prepared their clients for sessions, and other aspects. They needed to be more flexible, consult with colleagues more often, and mind the client-therapist relationship’s boundaries. It seems, when taken as a necessary short-term measure, online music therapy works sufficiently well. The majority of papers stated that benefits outweighed the challenges, although many benefits were directly linked with the pandemic context.

Telehealth music therapy for persons with dementia and/or caregivers

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 206-210
Author(s):  
Amy Clements-Cortés ◽  
Melissa Mercadal-Brotons ◽  
Tereza Raquel Alcântara Silva ◽  
Shirlene Vianna Moreira
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Interaction ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Music Therapy ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
And Training ◽  
Practical Recommendations

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed many restrictions on social interaction. Although these restrictions are challenging for everyone, they are particularly difficult for older adults who are often isolated. While telehealth has been around for a number of years, it had not been practiced to any great extent by music therapists until COVID-19. Telehealth will continue to prove valuable even when the pandemic ends, and as a result, it is timely to assess the benefits and recommendations for best practices. This paper provides a starting point of reflection for telehealth for persons with dementia, offering practical recommendations and implications for planning and training.

Reopening the Conversation Between Music Psychology and Music Therapy

2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-201
Author(s):  
Emily Carlson ◽  
Ian Cross
Keyword(s):  
Music Therapy ◽  
Interdisciplinary Research ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Research Collaboration ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Free Text ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Music Psychology ◽  
Analysis Of Results ◽  
Common Interests

Although the fields of music psychology and music therapy share many common interests, research collaboration between the two fields is still somewhat rare. Previous work has identified that disciplinary identities and attitudes towards those in other disciplines are challenges to effective interdisciplinary research. The current study explores such attitudes in music therapy and music psychology. A sample of 123 music therapists and music psychologists answered an online survey regarding their attitudes towards potential interdisciplinary work between the two fields. Analysis of results suggested that participants’ judgements of the attitudes of members of the other discipline were not always accurate. Music therapists indicated a high degree of interest in interdisciplinary research, although in free text answers, both music psychologists and music therapists frequently characterized music therapists as disinterested in science. Music therapists reported seeing significantly greater relevance of music psychology to their own work than did music psychologists of music therapists. Participants’ attitudes were modestly related to their reported personality traits and held values. Results overall indicated interest in, and positive expectations of, interdisciplinary attitudes in both groups, and should be explored in future research.

Telehealth Music Therapy Services in the United States With Older Adults: A Descriptive Study

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindsey Wilhelm ◽  
Kyle Wilhelm
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Music Therapy ◽  
Response Rate ◽  
Descriptive Study ◽  
The United States ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Therapy Services ◽  
Therapy Sessions

Abstract In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many music therapists in the United States turned to telehealth music therapy sessions as a strategy to continue services with older adults. However, the nature and perception of telehealth music therapy services for this age group are unknown. The purpose of this study was to describe music therapy telehealth practices with older adults in the United States including information related to session implementation, strengths and challenges, and adaptations to clinical practice. Of the 110 participants in the United States who responded to the survey (25.2% response rate), 69 reported implementing telehealth music therapy services with older adults and responded to a 32-item survey. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were conducted. Results indicated that while all participants had provided telehealth music therapy for no more than 6 months, their experiences with telehealth varied. Based on participant responses, telehealth session structure, strengths, challenges, and implemented changes are presented. Overall, 48% of music therapists reported that they planned to continue telehealth music therapy with older adults once pandemic restrictions are lifted. Further study on the quality, suitability, and acceptability of telehealth services with older adults is recommended.

Music Therapy Pre-internship Education and Training: Support for a Methods-Based Approach

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan C Gardstrom ◽  
James Hiller ◽  
Annie Heiderscheit ◽  
Nancy L Jackson
Keyword(s):  
Music Therapy ◽  
Best Practice ◽  
Clinical Decision Making ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Clinical Decision ◽  
Education And Training ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Training Support ◽  
And Training

Abstract As music therapists, music is our primary realm of understanding and action and our distinctive way of joining with a client to help them attain optimal health and well-being. As such, we have adopted and advocate for a music-focused, methods-based (M-B) approach to music therapy pre-internship education and training. In an M-B approach, students’ learning is centered on the 4 music therapy methods of composing, improvising, re-creating, and listening to music and how these music experiences can be designed and implemented to address the health needs of the diverse clientele whom they will eventually encounter as practicing clinicians. Learning is highly experiential, with students authentically participating in each of the methods and reflecting on these self-experiences as a basis for their own clinical decision-making. This is differentiated from a population based (P-B) approach, wherein students’ attention is directed at acquiring knowledge about the non-musical problems of specific “clinical populations” and the “best practice” music interventions that are presumed to address these problems. Herein, we discuss both approaches, identifying the limitations of a P-B perspective and outlining the benefits of an M-B curriculum and its relevance to 21st-century music therapy practice.

Reflections on the challenges of the new (online) music therapy setting for people with dementia

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 201-205
Author(s):  
Ayelet Dassa ◽  
Kendra Ray ◽  
Amy Clements-Cortés
Keyword(s):  
Music Therapy ◽  
Vulnerable Population ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Critical Situation ◽  
People With Dementia ◽  
Online Music ◽  
Online Setting

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic globally enforced safety precautions were implemented resulting in increased social distancing and isolation especially among people with dementia and their caregivers. This critical situation intensified the need to reach and support this already vulnerable population. Music therapists have answered the challenge by providing telehealth music therapy. However, the new online setting raises questions and dilemmas. As music therapists who have worked for many years with people with dementia and their caregivers, we pause to reflect on the new path we took and consider what we can learn and embrace from this new modality of practice.

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