Pediatric staff and their perceptions of music therapy services

Abstract

PurposeTo reveal the benefits, needs, and limitations of music therapy observed by clinical pediatric staff at a children's hospital in the United States of America. Design and methodsResearchers developed an electronic 13-question survey and distributed the survey in the fall of 2022. Questions included demographics, Likert-type scale, and open-ended queries. Data was collected via Qualtrics and analyzed using descriptive statistics and content analysis. ResultsA total of 83 pediatric staff completed the survey. Staff observed positive benefits, where the highest reported areas were opportunities for dealing with anxiety/stress (94.7%), opportunities for social interaction (93.3%), and quality of life (89.3%). Analysis of free-response questions suggest that staff expect expertise and a nuanced understanding of the needs of each of their clinical units. ConclusionResults suggest that staff possess an overall positive attitude toward music therapy in all settings served. Music therapists may be valuable for psychosocial and rehabilitative support to hospitalized children and their families. Practice implicationsNursing staff may utilize music therapists to improve patient outcomes and reduce the negative effects of hospitalization.