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The Rhythm of Connection: Describing the Heartbeats Intervention for Patients and Families Receiving Paediatric
Holly E Evans1,2, Matthew Ralph3, Tiina Jaaniste4
1Behavioural Sciences Unit, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine and Health, Randwick Clinical Campus, Discipline of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of New South Wales Sydney, Kensington, NSW 2031, Australia.
Insights
The Heartbeats Intervention uses children's heartbeats in music therapy to provide emotional support and create lasting memories for families in paediatric palliative care, aiding in bereavement.
Area of Science:
- Palliative Care
- Music Therapy
- Child Psychology
Background:
- Paediatric palliative care requires innovative approaches for emotional support and legacy creation.
- Music therapy offers unique avenues for therapeutic connection within this specialized field.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the Heartbeats Intervention, a music therapy technique used in paediatric palliative care.
- To highlight its role in providing psychosocial support and fostering connection for children and families.
Main Methods:
- Recording and integrating children's and family members' heartbeats into musical compositions.
- Utilizing these personalized compositions for therapeutic goals, including soothing and legacy creation.
Main Results:
- The Heartbeats Intervention effectively supports children with serious illnesses and their families.
- It facilitates legacy creation and aids in bereavement, with positive reception and ongoing expansion.
Conclusions:
- The Heartbeats Intervention is a flexible and meaningful music therapy approach in paediatric palliative care.
- It enhances psychosocial support and connection, though further research on long-term impact and patient experience is warranted.
Abstract:
Music therapy in paediatric palliative care offers a unique opportunity for emotional support, legacy creation, and therapeutic connection for children and their families. This paper describes the Heartbeats Intervention, as delivered by a paediatric palliative care music therapist at Sydney Children's Hospital Australia. This intervention involves recording and creatively integrating the heartbeats of children and family members into personalised musical compositions. Originally inspired by music therapist Brian Schreck's work, the intervention has evolved to meet diverse therapeutic goals, from soothing children with serious illnesses (including cancer) with recordings of their families' heartbeats to creating legacy song tracks that support families through bereavement. Despite some logistical and resource challenges, the intervention has been well-received and continues to expand, including the integration of environmental soundscapes and broader community involvement, which allows the intervention to be experienced by a greater number of families. This paper contributes to the limited but growing literature on music therapy in paediatric palliative care, highlighting the Heartbeats Intervention as a flexible and meaningful way to enhance psychosocial support and connection for children and their families. Further research to evaluate its long-term impact and to explore children's direct experiences of the intervention is needed.
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