“We know music affects the body on a cellular level,” says Virginia Gross, MT-BC, a board certified music therapist with VITAS Innovative Hospice Care^® of Chicagoland Northwest. “Music therapy has the potential to slow respirations, lower blood pressure and create an environment that encourages relaxation.”

Virginia is one of five VITAS music therapists working with terminally ill patients and their families in Chicago. As much a part of the clinical team as nurses or social workers, music therapists assess patients, set clinical goals and measure outcomes. In addition to their education and clinical training, the tools of a music therapist’s trade may include:

• Voice
• Keyboard
• Guitar
• Harp
• Woodwind instruments
• Brass instruments

The Power of Music
But it’s not just about the music; it’s about what the music can do.

 “The music has to be second nature,” explains Ana Madden, MT-BC, a music therapist who first realized the power of music as an inner-city teacher, “because the focus is on the patient. We look for physiological changes in such things as grimacing, rapid breathing, clenched fists, etc.”

“Music therapy may look like entertainment, but there is always a clinical goal,” adds Regan Thompson, MT-BC, of the Chicagoland Central program. Armed with the patient’s musical preferences and experiences, the therapist builds rapport through a unique blend of conversation and musical and clinical facilitation. “Music can elicit emotions without asking a lot of questions,” Regan says. “As therapists, we help the patient express emotions by providing appropriate music therapy interventions such as lyric analysis, song writing and imagery.

Ana tells of a patient with dementia experiencing anxiety and shortness of breath. A longtime harmonica player, he was motivated to play again when Ana began playing. “He tired quickly, but his anxiety decreased and he was able to relax and breathe more deeply,” Ana reports. “He was no longer focused on running out of breath; he was focused on the music.”