Music helps medical clinic find harmony
Challenge: No child likes needles. In Bloorview’s spasticity clinic, it’s stressful for parents and staff to calm kids while they receive Botox injections to relax tight muscles.
Solution: Armed with a guitar, drums, rattles and bells, a Bloorview music therapist and artist meet with the child and parents to assess what type of music will work to distract and soothe the child. Children try out the instruments, conduct the music and feel more in control. When the needle hurts, they’re encouraged to bang on a drum to get their frustration out.
Results: The procedure time of 10 minutes has been cut in half because children are less anxious and more cooperative. About 50 per cent of children report less pain during injections.
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150 Kilgour Road, Toronto Ontario Canada M4G 1R8 Tel: 416 425 6220 Toll Free: 800 363 2440. A teaching hospital fully affiliated with the University of Toronto
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