Parents as nurturing resources: A family integrated approach to music therapy for neonatal procedural support

Alexandra Ullsten Phd, Post doc, Region Värmland, Sweden and affiliated researcher, Örebro University, Sweden

 

Music therapy provides a means through which parents can learn to use their nurturing resources. Live infant directed singing is a relationship-based communication tool for parents in regulating the infant’s state, affects, and arousal levels and is therefore a suitable medium for parents to use during painful procedures.

Pain is best understood from a biopsychosocial perspective. For infants undergoing painful medical procedures, parents are a key biopsychosocial resource who can influence pain outcomes. Parent-delivered interventions such as infant-directed lullaby singing, breastfeeding and skin-to-skin contact where parents themselves mediate pain relief, is consistent with a modern understanding of pain and of family-integrated care. Parents’ feeling of being helpful to their infant can contribute to a sense of control over a challenging situation and affirm their parental role. Integrating parents in pain management helps equip parents with nurturing skills they can use beyond the acute period.

Neonatal pain research is an interdisciplinary field where music therapy has just started to publish results. Ullsten (2019) presents “the Nordic neonatal music therapy pain management strategy”, which is a family integrated biopsychosocial and resource-oriented theoretical and practical model. With this strategy, Ullsten adapts Ghetti’s (2012) working model of music therapy as procedural support to illustrate the theoretical underpinnings of a model in which parents assume primary caregiving roles during the provision of procedural support via parent-delivered interventions.

This workshop will include critical reflections of the available research evidence including key areas for future research and translating what is known into effective practice.

References

Ullsten A. Singing, sharing, soothing: Family-centred music therapy during painful procedures in neonatal care. Doctoral dissertation. Örebro: Örebro University; 2019. http://oru.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1360872&dswid=9847

Ghetti CM. Music therapy as procedural support for invasive medical procedures: Toward the development of music therapy theory. Nordic J Mus Ther. 2012;21(1):3-35. doi.org/10.1080/08098131.2011.571278