Melissa Owens is one of the music therapists at VCU Health who help patients in their treatment.

Music therapy at VCU Health hits the right note for patients

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Pain and stress relief, physical rehabilitation and even brain injury have in common one healing agent that is both soothing and syncopated.

Music.

At Virginia Commonwealth University Health, the music therapy program, which is part of the Department of Cultural Programs, Arts in Health Care, features a variety of musical interventions that serve as therapy, in combination with traditional medicinal treatment. Singing and playing instruments are just some of the techniques used as part of patients’ therapy sessions.

VCU Health was a stage sponsor for the Richmond Folk Festival, Oct. 9-11. The event attracted more than 100,000 people to downtown Richmond’s riverfront to celebrate world cultures through dance, traditional crafts, storytelling and music. Members of the music therapy program view music as a serious and worthwhile aspect of patient treatment.

VCU Health served as a stage sponsor at this year's Richmond Folk Festival.
VCU Health served as a stage sponsor at this year's Richmond Folk Festival.

Our patients often have needs secondary to their medical diagnosis, which we can address with music therapy. Those may include stress management, general wellness, spirituality, psychosocial needs, communication, motor coordination and sequencing,” said Melissa Owens, a board-certified music therapist in the music therapy program. “At VCU Health, we are able to work throughout the entire hospital, which is unique for medical music therapists. Music therapists are often employed to work in one specific department within a medical setting.”

Patients are referred for music therapy from pediatric and adult units, including ICUs and outpatient clinics.  

“Once a referral is received, we assess the patient to determine if music therapy is appropriate for them and we then create a treatment plan based on the goals that have been identified by the referral source and by our own assessment process,” Owens said. “We aim to see each referred patient at least twice per week, working with them until they are discharged from the hospital or have reached their treatment goals.”

A patient’s goals might include lower stress levels or pain management. Each patient session is individualized and the genres of music vary depending on a patient’s needs. The presence of the therapist is what makes music therapy different from a more casual experience with music, said Candace Deshler, also a board-certified music therapist with VCU Health. Music therapists carefully observe clients or patients and manipulate the qualities of music during their interventions to bring about a desired change.

When our clients are engaged in music therapy their entire brain is being activated and stimulated, thus increasing the therapeutic benefit.

“Music, in general, is a very powerful medium, affecting us in many different ways. People naturally use music to help them sleep, wind down or get pumped up for the gym. However, the presence of the music therapist is the most significant difference between music therapy and passive music listening,” she said.  “When our clients are engaged in music therapy their entire brain is being activated and stimulated, thus increasing the therapeutic benefit. Music therapists lead clients in music-making, song-writing, lyric analysis and other interventions to engage the brain. Those are things that are not necessarily going to be achieved from just passively listening to music. Music therapists are trained to design and utilize specific techniques and the music itself in order to assist in achieving goals.”

Formal training for music therapists involves attending a four-year undergraduate music therapy program or a two-year graduate certificate program, if a student already has a bachelor’s degree in music. Curriculum includes major instrument study, psychology, music and specific music therapy classes, as well as an anatomy and physiology course.

Our support of the arts helps build a healthier community.

Both Owens and Deshler say there is extensive credible research that shows the benefits of music therapy in The Journal of Music Therapy and Music Therapy Perspectives, as well as in nursing journals, psychiatric journals and other scholarly publications.

VCU Health’s sponsorship of the Richmond Folk Festival is part of its recognition of the importance of the arts, officials said.

“As the health hub of an amazing, vibrant community, VCU Health has been a proud supporter of the Richmond Folk Festival for over five years,” said Cynthia Schmidt, chief of marketing in the Department of Strategy and Marketing. “Our support of the arts helps build a healthier community, and we are thrilled to have been a stage sponsor at this year's festival.”

For information about the music therapy program, call Melissa Owens or Candace Deshler at 804-828-9962.