Services - Music Therapy
- Clinical Programs
- Paediatric Music Therapy Clinical Training Program
- Internship
- The internship for January-June 2009 has been filled. No further applications accepted.
- The internship for July-December 2009 is now open
- Recorded Music Library
- Staff consultation
- Seminar & Lectures
Services are focused on several wards (see Clinical Programs below). Staff from other departments may refer infants or children of any age for Music Therapy, and they will be placed on the list for service as time permits. The service is family-centred, and therefore may involve all members of the family as appropriate. The children and/or families might be referred when they are anxious, depressed, in pain, immobile, angry, withdrawn, isolated or long-term patients. While the majority of clients are in-patients, some children are seen in out-patient clinics.
Referrals maybe made by staff via the IBA computer system, e-mail, telephone or referral form.
Parents should ask their bedside nurse or care manager about making a referral.
Please be aware that the Music Therapy Unit does have waiting lists, and may not be able to provide immediate service.
Clinical Programs
Adolescent Program
Clinician: Meagan Hunt [meagan.hunt@rch.org.au]
The adolescent ward at Royal Children’s Hospital acknowledges the unique needs of young people at this developmental stage. Music therapy understands that young people have a range of different needs based on their life stage.
Music therapy has become part of the way the adolescent ward defines its model of care and the services it provides to young people.
Song writing has become an integral part of the adolescent program as it is an age appropriate activity. Adolescents understand the popular culture of song writing and in a music therapy context utilise its therapeutic qualities to express their evolving identity in relation not only to their developmental stage but also the illness or trauma that has brought them into hospital.
Recording the young people’s songs has also become an integral part of the program that accompanies the song writing component. The current equipment does not include multi tracking which could involve the young people more fully in the recording side of the song production process. With the addition of this equipment they would then write, arrange and be actively involved in recording their songs to a music studio standard and experience directly the process involved in producing a song. This is a highly valued experience which counter-balances the loss of independence and personal autonomy experienced by young people in hospital.
Children’s Cancer Centre
In-patient
Out-patient
Lumbar Puncture/Bone Marrow Aspirate Clinic
Clinicians: Beth Dun (in-patient & lumbar puncture clinic) [beth.dun@rch.org.au] and Janeen Mackenzie (Out-patients — Thursday clinic)
The journey for the child with cancer can take several years from diagnosis to resolution. Music therapy provides the unique service of accompanying the child for the entire journey. Music therapy interventions are aimed at diminishing anxiety while encouraging active engagement with a patient's environment. Engagement enables children to develop positive, active coping strategies to manage their anxiety and stress. Music can alter stressful characteristics of the hospital environment and help divert the patient’s attention away from a source of distress. A child's mood can shift to a more positive state as they begin to experience success and mastery in their environment. Engagement in music helps children maximise the positive experience they share with families, other children and staff. This has important implications in helping children cope with stressful treatments and long-term side-effects. The experience of creating music together has been a source of comfort and support for many families during hospitalisation.
Day Surgery Unit
Co-ordinating clinician — Beth Dun [beth.dun@rch.org.au]
The music therapy team (including students from the University of Melbourne) provides two sessions of music therapy per day. Children come to the Day Surgery Unit for a minor operation under general anaesthetic. It is usually an unfamiliar environment for them, and the children are anxious. Apart from the obvious fact that we do not want children to be distressed, such a child requires higher levels of sedation and is obviously more difficult to work with. The music therapists work with groups of children to allay their anxiety.
Neonate and Infant Program
Clinician: Helen Shoemark [helen.shoemark@rch.org.au ]
The Neonate and Infant Program gives priority services to infants under the age of 12 months and their families with a focus on the Neonatal Unit and the Cardiac Unit. We know that hospitalisation does not support normal infant development and therefore we provide formal intervention to encourage development. Infants are “wired” for sound as part of their survival mechanism and therefore the use of singing and music is full of potential.
Music therapy is a service which promotes healthy positive development within the hospital experience. Two main modalities are used:
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Making music together— Infant-directed singing is an experience in which parent and infant are uniquely attuned to each other, promoting healthy attachment. The act of singing encourages mothers or fathers to breathe more deeply, and to become focused on their baby as a baby rather than a patient.
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Recorded Music— The music therapist works with the family to create a small library of recorded music. The music is introduced over several days by the parents, to build a solid psychological association with their loving care. Then the music may be used to support the infant in trausition to sleep, post-procedureor in unsettled times.
The Music therapy for vulnerable infants study provided us with data to clearly explain the value of singing. Results from a neurobehavioral assessment of the infants suggested that music therapy helps infants to cope with hospitalisation. Infants who did not receive the therapy deteriorated on scales of irritability and crying, while infants who did receive the therapy demonstrated much greater resilience on these measures.
Neurosciences Program
Clinician: Janeen Mackenzie [janeen.mackenzie@rch.org.au ]
Music therapy in the Children’s Neuroscience Centre provides services to children, babies and adolescents with disorders and/or injuries of the brain and nerves. The program serves those patients on the 8th floor and the intensive care unit (ICU). Priority is given to long term patients.
Music therapy aims to improve the health outcomes of the patients utilising non-invasive, developmentally appropriate methods. Assessment for service considers - the individual patient, including, health status, age, musical preferenes, family, and hospital environment.
Music therapy provides a unique opportunity to address the needs of long-term patients with ABIs.
Rehabilitation Service
Clinician: Janeen Mackenzie [janeen.mackenzie@rch.org.au ]
Rehabilitation is often a challenging time for children. As part of the multi-disciplinary team, music therapy aims to improve the functional abilities of children and young people following a major illness, injury or procedure. As a familiar medium, music may give meaning and increase motivation for repetitive rehabilitation tasks. Music therapy treatments for rehabilitation patients vary greatly according to the child and may address speech and language or motor rehabilitation as well as the social and emotional aspect of recovery. Children are encouraged to become actively involved in their Music Therapy program, both in the planning and implementation.
Paediatric Music Therapy Clinical Training Program
The Royal Children’s Hospital Music Therapy Unit has provided clinical training placements to individual University of Melbourne music therapy students since 1991. In 2005 external funding was provided for a broader paediatric music therapy clinical training program to be developed and the program now offers concurrent student placements for music therapy students undertaking an accredited course of music therapy. The Unit also accepts graduates from accredited overseas courses for a six month internship.
Music therapy students provide additional music therapy services supervised by the clinical supervisor. The clinical supervisor is responsible for placing students appropriately within the hospital, direct observation of student work, supervision, debriefing, and co-ordination of supporting activities. Projects are undertaken by the students examining the effectiveness of the music therapy program.
The Music Therapy Unit’s team of experienced clinicians offers the students specialisation in their clinical domains.
Internship
Recognition of internship
The clinical training and internship program at the Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne is accepted by the Australian Music Therapy Association.
The Royal Children’s Hospital has music therapy internship agreements with:
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The University of Melbourne
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The University of Missouri, Kansas City
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The University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire
NB. If you trained at a program other than the above, you are responsible for ensuring that the internship will be supported by your University or professional accreditation program. Please speak to your professor or local accreditation board about pursuing an international internship.
Insurance
Interns are covered for a minimal amount under the hospital’s insurance. It is not a requirement of the hospital normally with exception of senior medical staff who are strongly encouraged to have their own insurance.
Focus of internship
The clinical specialization of the internship is neonatology under the direction of the supervisor Dr Helen Shoemark. This means that the majority of the clinical caseload will be with neonates and infants. However, the intern will also provide clinical services to the Day Surgery Unit, and children and adolescents on other wards at the discretion of the supervisor.
For the full internship program, please click [HERE] PDF 130kb
The closing date for the internship is very early to accommodate the timeline for an international student visa application.
The closing date for the July-December 2009 internship is January 30, 2009.
For the application form, please click [HERE] PDF 40kb
For further information, please contact Beth Dun, after reading all materials presented on this webpage.
Recorded Music Library
The Music Therapy Unit’s Recorded Music Library is developing a range of musical genres for loan throughout the hospital. Recorded music is often used as an adjunct to the clinical programs, and can assist in relaxation, distraction from procedural pain, masking extraneous hospital and as an age appropriate and familiar activity in an often unfamiliar environment. The MTs use recorded music for children who have been referred and assessed for the appropriate recorded music. Playing equipment is also made available. The music librarian keeps the department up-todate on issues of copyright and technology.
Staff Consultation
On request, music therapists advise other members about the application of music in their area. They work with staff to prepare suitable auditory stimulation for areas such as the ward, treatment rooms, bathrooms, and play-rooms.
Seminars & Lectures
The music therapists present lectures, seminars and talks to professional and community groups. If you are interested in having a music therapist speak to your group please contact our department on 9345 5421. In some instances a fee is charged for this service.