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Music Therapy: Why Doctors Use it to Help Patients Cope

DESCRIPTION

Have you hear about Music Therapy as an adjunct to medical treatment?   Music Therapy has been validated in hospital settings as a very helpful adjunct in patient treatment.   “The healing power of music — lauded by philosophers from Aristotle and Pythagoras to Pete Seeger — is now being validated by medical research. It is used in targeted treatments for asthma, autism, depression and more, including brain disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy and stroke.  Live music has made its way into some surprising venues, including oncology waiting rooms to calm patients as they wait for radiation and chemotherapy. It also greets newborns in some neonatal intensive care units and comforts the dying in hospice.”  The article cites a number of fascinating instances where music therapy has been extremely beneficial for patients undergoing a variety of treatments.   “While musical therapies are rarely stand-alone treatments, they are increasingly used as adjuncts to other forms of medical treatment. They help people cope with their stress and mobilize their body’s own capacity to heal.”

Consider the article as a resource in several ways: Positive and Health Psychology, Psychotherapy, and perhaps to be even considered as a career path.

SOURCE

New York Times, April 8, 2021, by Richard Shiffman

LINK TO RESOURCE

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/08/well/music-therapy-treatment-stress.html?smid=em-share

(Tiny URL)  https://tinyurl.com/2tj3smaw

CLASS DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

•What is music therapy?

•What are the conclusions of research into the use of music therapy?

•Patients with what types of diseases/disorders have been shown to be helped with music therapy?

•If you were explaining music therapy as an adjunctive support in a hospital setting, which case would you use as part of your discussion?  And why?