Resources & references

Read an article exploring two case studies of the interdisciplinary collaboration between music therapists and medical social workers in end-of-life periods for patients in intensive care units (ICUs). The ways that each professional complements the other are highlighted. 

This article explores the efficacy of music therapy interventions in palliative care and their therapeutic impact on physical, psychological, emotional, and spiritual well-being.

Read about music therapist Anne Lacourse's work at the Saint Raphaël Palliative Care Home and Day Center and watch a video (1m 6s) of her peforming a song composed by one of her clients.

This article examines the therapeutic benefits of music therapy for palliative care patients experiencing physical, psychological, emotional, and spiritual distress. Findings suggest that music therapy offers a cost-effective, nonpharmacological approach to relieving symptoms among pallative care patients and supporting healthcare providers.

Watch as music therapist Kelsey MacDonald provides music therapy sessions to a patient with dementia at Aberdeen Hospital and listen to testimonials from the patient's daughter and the director of the palliative care unit.

The article describes an innovative method of facilitating grief resolution using precomposed music that is significant to the patient after a major loss. In this method, music is of equal importance with verbal processing as part of the overall therapeutic approach. Musical improvization is also used as a primary tool to reflect back to, and affirm for, the patient the affective content of his or her life story. 

Heather Overly, a board-certified music therapist leads a music therapy session with an older adult in hospice care. She explains how music therapy can improve quality of life among this population.

This book chapter explains the effects of music therapy in palliative care. It is derived from the Oxford Textbook of Palliative Medicine (5th Ed) published by the Oxford University Press. Note: The link includes the full text of the chapter (i.e., 18 pages plus references).

This article presents how music therapy can be incorporated in end-of-life care, through the lens of Philippe Ariès' theories of death.

This article describes work by music therapists to support patients in medically assisted dying, and discusses the role music therapy can play for individuals with these needs.

This research article studies the effects of music therapy for patients with a terminal illness who are receiving end-of-life care within a family context. It studies the impact that music therapy can have on patients' immune system, quality of life, quality of sleep, and anxiety and depression levels.