Top Ten Tips Palliative Care Clinicians Should Know About Music Therapy and Art Therapy.

Palliative care is provided by an interdisciplinary team, including physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, social workers, chaplains, and other disciplines based on need. Music therapists and art therapists are becoming increasingly available to palliative care teams and are advancing the diverse and unique clinical services available to effectively meet the holistic needs of patients with serious illnesses and their families. This article provides a concrete exploration of clinical music therapy and art therapy within palliative care and hospice paradigms, with discussion of therapists' training and expertise, therapeutic approaches within the setting of interprofessional team-based care, and discussion of evidence-based symptom management and outcomes supporting the inclusion of music and art therapies within medical education and clinical employment.

Virtual Reality-Based Music Therapy in Palliative Care: A Pilot Implementation Trial.

Background: Music therapy (MT) and virtual reality (VR) have shown favorable patient-reported outcomes during serious illness. Objectives: To evaluate implementation measures of feasibility, usability, and acceptability of a VR-based MT intervention. Design: A pilot implementation study of a two-day VR-MT intervention using mixed methods. Patients created a personalized soundtrack with a music therapist, and then paired the soundtrack with a 360° VR environment. Setting/Subjects: Hospitalized patients with palliative care needs. Results: Of 23 patients (ages 20-74 years, 52% women), 17 completed the intervention, including 39% during an intensive care unit stay. Participants scored usability above average. For satisfaction, 53% chose the highest rating. Most participants spoke favorably of VR-MT, describing pleasant emotional and physical responses. Participants provided feedback on length, frequency of use, VR options, and timing of delivery. Conclusion: This VR-MT intervention was feasible, usable, and acceptable for hospitalized palliative care patients. Further study will test VR-MT outcomes.