An Eclectic Approach to Working With a Dyad of a Patient With Traumatic Brain Injury and His Caregiver

Journal

Music and Medicine

Year

2020

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative, descriptive case study is to describe the impact of music therapy on a dyad relationship between a client and his personal caregiver. Our investigation provides suggestions for developing methods on how to work with a client who is severely, profoundly brain injured, and who required feeding, bathing, and positioning, 5 years post-trauma. In the context of treating this dyad; a son and his mother, we explored the practice of songwriting. An original song was created during the period of this study and was shared with the caregiver. The song provided support for maintaining hope and resilience for both the client and his caregiver. An interview was conducted with the caregiver one-year post sessions. In treating patients and families within the context of a dyadic process, the relationship enhanced through music therapy between client and caregiver may be crucial to the rehabilitation process. Therefore, the authors suggest that treatment practitioners, especially those who use music as part of the treatment process, adopt a family-centered approach to further improve the quality of care. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)

Music and Health Institute Terms

Caregivers; Music Therapy; Receptive Music Methods; Songwriting; Subjective Measures; Traumatic Brain Injury

Indexed Terms

Resilience (Psychological); Treatment; Caregivers; Quality of Care; traumatic brain injury; Brain Development; Dyad; Dyads; family-centered care; quality improvement

Study Type

Descriptive Analysis; Qualitative Methods

Document Type

Article

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