Resources & references

Many young people experience social isolation during times of mental illness which can impact lifelong health outcomes. Supporting recovery involves addressing the social dimensions of mental health and promoting capacity for community engagement. A practice-based study was designed to explore how a pilot group music therapy project could support young people to bridge from mental health services into everyday community engagement. Results show that young people’s experienced of the group as a safe space that supported processes of coming together and constructing the social identity. The concept of scaffolding is offered as a useful way of considering how support may be structured.

This review investigated the effects of music-based interventions (music therapy and music medicine) on pain and anxiety in children and adults undergoing medical procedures. Conclusions: There is a need to clearly define and differentiate between music therapy and music medicine interventions in procedural support research. Further research is necessary to determine which patients would benefit most from music interventions during medical procedures, and which interventions are most beneficial. 

This document describes how music therapy can benefit elderly and their caregivers, particularly in Australia. It explains what music therapy is, its affordability and accessibility in Australia, and how it can improve the quality of life among adults with dementia, anxiety, depression, and neurodegenerative diseases.

This systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials in burn patients was performed to determine the effect of music during treatments. In summary, a positive correlation was found between treatments including music interventions and pain alleviation, anxiety relief, and heart rate reduction in burn patients. However, additional high-quality studies with carefully considered music interventions for burn patients are still needed.

This research article studies the effects of music therapy for patients with a terminal illness who are receiving end-of-life care within a family context. It studies the impact that music therapy can have on patients' immune system, quality of life, quality of sleep, and anxiety and depression levels.