Music therapy assessment tools in practice: challenges and opportunities

Abstract

Background: The sustainability of music therapy in competitive healthcare economies needs to be underpinned by robust means of assessment, meaningful to our multidisciplinary colleagues. Music therapy assessment tools offer unique advantages because of the non-verbal, motivational and emotional qualities of music, capable of discerning subtle responses in clients hard to reach using other modalities. Whilst unable to capture all music therapy can offer, developments in this field are underpinning evidence-based growth of our profession.Objective: Drawing on the authors’ experience, insights are offered on challenges and opportunities afforded by music therapy assessment tools; from designing the “Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Advanced Huntington’s Disease”, to exploring how validated tools have been successfully adopted by the author and colleagues in the behavioural and interpersonal domains. Clinical audit data will illustrate how the “Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Cons...