How do you see the role of the music therapist fitting in with the other disciplines?

Music therapy is a vital part of any interdisciplinary team! The nature of music itself encourages participation from our clients in a way that allows them to step outside their comfort zones while still working towards those therapeutic goals. Music therapy assists with motivation, engagement, and more in order to help clients achieve success in ways that might not be as easily attainable in other forms of therapy.

“When we collaborate together, it makes the goals more fun for the clients. It’s a different way for them to tackle something [and is] more fun and naturally motivating than a tangible reward.”

Many of our therapists expressed that one of the most valuable aspects of music therapy is its potential for co-treatment with other therapies or disciplines. By integrating music into physical therapy or occupational therapy sessions, clients can become more naturally motivated to participate in exercises that might otherwise feel overwhelming. The built-in structure and rhythm of music can facilitate movement, motivation, and fun and can enhance the efficacy of the therapies and create a more enjoyable and rewarding experience for the client.

“Any time that there’s a collaboration, the client is going to benefit from that.”

Interdisciplinary collaboration has benefits for not only the client, but the professionals involved, too! When we get to work with behavioral consultants or speech therapists, we learn from each other and can gain a deeper understanding of our clients. It helps us create a unified treatment plan and makes sure that we’re all on the same page when it comes to communication, redirection, prompting, and so much more. Each therapist expressed gratitude regarding the opportunities they’ve had to work alongside another professional and shared personal stories about how that helped them learn how to more effectively work with their client going forward.

Have you had the opportunity to collaborate with another discipline? What was your experience like?