The ears of patients at Evanston Hospital are treated to more than just intercom calls and snippets of nurses’ conversations.
For a year and a half, the hospital has been incorporating the Music and Medicine Program into its existing services, said Elizabeth Espinoza, coordinator of the program.
Though the hospital has had a sparse music therapy program for 10 years, an anonymous donor allowed hospital officials to expand music offerings to more patients and their families.
Therapists commonly work with hospice patients and those referred to the program for emotional expression, pain management and coping skills.
“We use music to achieve non-musical goals,” Espinoza said. “We serve as an adjunct to other rehab as something familiar and non-threatening to patients. They know that we’re not trying to get any information out of them; we’re just there to talk. Sometimes they don’t even realize that they’re in therapy.”
In one-on-one sessions, patients may listen to music to help deal with their emotions or use songs as an escape from pain and other factors leading to stress.
The service is also a source of joy in a hectic hospital, Espinoza said. She recalled one stroke patient who would sing along to the tunes during her visits.
“The hospital is such a busy environment and the people are so sick, so they are often so surprised to find something pleasant,” she said.
Friends and family of patients have also benefitted from the music. Since November, musicians have volunteered to play in waiting rooms, lobbies and nursing stations as a part of the Live Music Program.
“There are a lot of people that want to give back,” Espinoza said.
As more people began to request the treatments, Espinoza said, Evanston Hospital’s program expanded its services to Glenbrook Hospital in Glenview by hiring music therapist Regan Thompson in September.
Thompson began her musical career at the age of five, but said she chose music therapy to meld two of her passions: music and philanthropy.
“I’m able to do something I’m passionate about while helping others,” she said.
A typical day for Thompson includes personalized sessions with patients with a variety of needs and conditions. She first meets with a new patient to discuss their musical preferences and things they may be struggling with.
Since this innovative brand of care has become more popular, Thompson’s number of cases changes daily.
“We’ve seen more patients and more families asking for music therapy,” she said. “It’s becoming more of a trend. It’s been around for a while, but now more people are starting to see the benefits.”
This growth is happening in other areas as well. Currently, 74 universities are accredited by the American Music Therapy Association, Director of Communications Al Bumanis said.
“More students are now enrolled in degree programs,” said Bumanis. “Our membership has also increased – we estimate that there are about 7,000 practicing music therapists in the U.S. today.”
More significant than educational opportunities, Bumanis said, is the availability of insurance coverage. Patients who previously would have had to pay for treatment out of pocket are now more likely to seek out music therapy and ask for referrals due to more comprehensive insurance plans, he said.
“Twenty years ago, there was hardly any third party reimbursement, and now upwards of 25 percent of insurance companies cover it,” he said. “Our statistics show that more jobs are being created in the field as a result of this.”
Some states, including Pennsylvania, Michigan and Indiana, even cover music therapy under Medicaid in certain circumstances.
Baby boomers, typically covered by Medicaid, will be the most common recipients of music therapy in the near future, Bumanis said. Like many pre-professional health fields, music therapy is becoming more lucrative as the generation ages and needs more extensive care.
“We’ll have a lot of musical therapists playing Beatles songs,” he said.
Though legislative and administrative efforts define the future of music therapy, Espinoza said volunteers are essential to Evanston Hospital’s program.
Espinoza, who volunteered as a music therapist in college, said the Evanston and Glenbrook hospitals are always eager to work with musicians and budding therapists. She is planning to contact Northwestern and other area universities to find students interested in performing live music or shadowing someone like Thompson.
“We serve a different but necessary purpose,” she said. “We’re able to develop that relationship with patients that a lot of times, they don’t get at a hospital.”
