Abstract
BackgroundEvidence about the effectiveness of music therapy for improving the quality of life of palliative care patients is positive but weak in terms of risk of bias.MethodsThis study aimed to determine the feasibility of a randomised controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of music therapy for improving the quality of life of hospice inpatients, as measured by the McGill Quality of Life questionnaire. Objectives included recruitment of 52 participants over 12 months and provision of data to support the calculation of the required sample size for a definitive randomised trial, taking into account the retention rates of recruited participants; and evaluation of the viability of the intervention and the acceptability of the assessment tool. The design was a single-centre, researcher-blinded randomised pilot and feasibility study involving two parallel groups. Participants were recruited from one inpatient hospice unit in Northern Ireland. Eligibility criteria were an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of two or lower and an Abbreviated Mental Test score of seven or more. Consenting patients were randomly allocated to the intervention or control group using a 1:1 allocation ratio. The intervention group received up to six individual music therapy sessions over 3 weeks in addition to usual care. The control group received usual care only.ResultsFifty one participants were recruited over 12 months. Twenty five were allocated to the intervention group and 26 to the control group. Seventy one percent of participants were lost to follow up by week 3, the proposed primary endpoint. The primary endpoint was moved from week 3, when 71% were lost to follow up to week 1, when 33% were lost. The McGill Quality of Life questionnaire was generally acceptable to participants. In order to detect a small to moderate effect size of 0.3, a fully powered study would require the recruitment of 698 participants.ConclusionsA Phase III randomised controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of music therapy in improving the quality of life of hospice inpatients is feasible.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02791048. Registered 6 June 2016.
Highlights
Evidence about the effectiveness of music therapy for improving the quality of life of palliative care patients is positive but weak in terms of risk of bias
While several studies have suggested that music therapy may improve the quality of life of palliative care patients, many of them had a high risk of bias [10]
Recruitment, retention and sample size calculation We recruited and randomised patients between June 2016 and June 2017, which was 98% of the original target of participants. 43.2% of 118 patients deemed eligible for the study were recruited
Summary
Evidence about the effectiveness of music therapy for improving the quality of life of palliative care patients is positive but weak in terms of risk of bias. The effectiveness of music therapy in ameliorating a wide range of psychological and physical problems associated with palliative care has been reported in the literature [7]. This includes lowering levels of stress and anxiety, and improving mood, relaxation, overall wellbeing and attitude to life, along with reducing pain levels [8,9,10]. It has been suggested that this lack of robust evidence can at least partially explain why, while the availability of music therapy for palliative and end-of-life care patients is increasing, funding for it tends to be inconsistent [11]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
