Music therapy in neonatal care: a framework for German speaking countries and Switzerland

Abstract

Music therapy in neonatal care reflects a growing area of multi- and inner disciplinary interest in practice and research. But what exactly characterizes best practice in neonatal music therapy? First guidelines already exist but the question remains what implications they have for the German-speaking area considering specific cultural issues. The German speaking Professional Circle of Neonatal Music Therapists aimed to address these questions by developing an overall framework from the three approaches typical of this region 1) recorded mothers voice 2) live vocal and 3) live instrumental music therapy. The group synthesized the members’ practical clinical expertise with the best available evidence, guidelines in neonatal music therapy and German guidelines for individualized developmental neonatal care. The paper presents this framework in a clear and applicable table with overall objectives, (contra-) indications and methods despite the specific approach. The two emerging key elements of this synthesizing process are the central role of the voice and the integration of the whole family in the therapeutic process. The framework should serve as a well founded guide enabling music therapists to offer best cultural adapted practice and to better position themselves as integrity among various related disciplines and opinions.

Theoretical Perspectives and Therapeutic Approaches in Music Therapy with Families

“…Many music therapists describe the importance of working collaboratively with family members in various populations, demonstrating the vast breadth of work that can be considered part of this field. Populations where there have been several publications include: neonates (i.e., Gooding & Trainor, 2018;Ettenberger et al, 2017;Haslbeck, 2012;Haslbeck et al, 2018;Loewy, 2015;Shoemark et al, 2015;Teckenberg-Jansson et al, 2011) autistic children (i.e., Blauth, 2016;Gottfried, 2016;Gottfried et al, 2018;Thompson, 2012;Thompson et al, 2014;Walworth, 2012), disabled children (i.e., Loth, 2008;Oldfield, 2008;Williams et al, 2012), hospitalized children and adults (i.e., Ayson, 2008;Baron, 2017;O'Callaghan & Jordan, 2011;Shoemark, 2004;Shoemark & Dearn, 2008), survivors of trauma (i.e., Colegrove et al, 2018;Drake, 2011;Hasler, 2008;Salkeld, 2008;Stuart, 2018;Tuomi, 2017), survivors of child abuse (i.e., Jacobsen & McKinney, 2015;Oldfield, 2017), people with life limiting conditions (i.e., Aasgaard, 2001;Lindenfelser et al, 2008;Lindenfelser et al, 2012;Savage & Taylor Johnston, 2013), refugees (i.e., Edwards et al, 2007;Oscarsson, 2017), and people with dementia (i.e., Beer, 2017;Raglio et al, 2016;…”

“…With 18 different clinical populations described by participants, the results indicate that working with families is a practice approach that is becoming more relevant across the life span. While music therapy practice in neonatal care has had a long standing focus on working with families (i.e., Gooding & Trainor, 2018;Haslbeck, 2012;Haslbeck et al, 2018;Ettenberger et al, 2017;Loewy, 2015;Shoemark et al, 2015;Teckenberg-Jansson et al, 2011), music therapy with older adults (i.e., Beer, 2017;Raglio et al, 2016;Ridder, 2017) and within end of life care also has an increasing emphasis on working with the whole family (i.e., Aasgaard, 2001;Lindenfelser et al, 2008;Lindenfelser et al, 2012;Savage & Taylor Johnston, 2013). However, the results from this survey suggest that music therapy with families is still dominated by work with children and their parents, with 79% of respondents describing their work with children and adolescents.…”

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

“…5. Hum and sing simply in lullaby style in order not to overwhelm the infant: Keep the voice calm, slow, simple, predictable, repetitive, and contingent with the pitch range of children's songs based on the guidelines of neonatal music therapy 24,43,44 . Hum with flowing breath and a free natural voice full of overtones and total ease.…”