Music Therapy During End-of-life Care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) – Reflections from Early Clinical Practice in Colombia

Abstract

Abstr Abstract actMusic therapy during end-of-life care has become an increasingly applied therapeutic option for a broad range of populations in a variety of settings. While music therapy in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is a well-established field of clinical research and practice, there is a lack of literature that specifically addresses issues related to end-of-life care in this setting. In this article, the author aims to reflect upon some of the potentials, difficulties, and challenges when accompanying babies and their families during their last stages of life in the NICU. Three case vignettes will be described in order to exemplify aspects related to rituality, culture, memory making, and family-centred care. It is hoped that these case studies prompt the exchange of ideas and experiences among music therapists and other health care professionals concerned with end-of-life care in the NICU. K Ke eywor ywords: ds: end-of-life care, music therapy, NICU, preterm infants, palliative care, family-centred care, Colombia Intr Introduction oductionAnother plausible model for an origin of early human music is the lament, a widespread performance by individuals or groups in which the natural behaviour of weeping and moaning in grief at the loss by death or separation from a loved one became formalized and elaborated in song/poetry/movement, and shared with others to relieve feelings of helplessness, individual isolation, despair, and the anxiety attendant on the interruption death makes to the life of an individual or group. (Dissanayke, 2009, p. 26)

Clinical Practice Protocol of Creative Music Therapy for Preterm Infants and Their Parents in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

“…Mostly, CMT should be delivered when the infants are clinically stable and do not suffer severe or life-threatening instability as defined by the neonatal team. Nonetheless, music therapists can provide CMT as palliative care as well when recommended by the neonatal team and or requested by the parents 61 . CMT with parental integration can only occur when the parents are present and willing to participate.…”

Intersections of the arts and art therapies in the humanization of care in hospitals: Experiences from the music therapy service of the University Hospital Fundación Santa Fe de Bogotá, Colombia

“…At the FSFB, the music therapy service is regularly asked to accompany patients, families, and caregivers during end-of-life care. This is not only the case for oncology patients, but also in the ICUs, where the elaboration of rituals, memorymaking, and family participation are the cornerstones of the music therapy process (67). Furthermore, the music therapy service accompanies weddings, baptize rituals or other religious ceremonies for palliative care patients inside the hospital.…”

Percepção dos pais sobre o uso da música no ambiente neonatal

“…O desenvolvimento de novos estudos, têm permitido mostrar que o uso da música pode ser utilizado como forma terapêutica para a redução da dor nos recém-nascidos prematuros. Recentes pesquisas têm utilizado a música como método não farmacológico, durante procedimentos dolorosos no recém-nascido, bem como uma estratégia para minimização do estresse (Bieleninik et al, 2016;Ettenberger, 2017).…”