Resource Results

"A successful transition to civilian life is challenging for many service members returning from deployment. Psychological and physical injuries may hamper successful reintegration into home life and communities and, as a result, many service members report feeling lonely, isolated and misunderstood. This study analyzed 14 songs written by 11 active-duty service members with post-traumatic stress disorder, mild traumatic brain injury, and psychological health conditions, who received music therapy services at the National Intrepid Center of Excellence, a Directorate of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in the United States of America. Service members wrote songs over the course of two or more individual music therapy sessions. Latent thematic analysis of the song lyrics yielded four main themes: (a) personal struggles and barriers to recovery, (b) moving forward, (c) relational challenges, and (d) positive relationships and support. The songs offer a window into service members’ lived experiences of military service, injury, recovery, homecoming, and transition from active-duty. Songwriting enabled service members to share their thoughts, emotions, fears and hopes with family, friends and other providers, often for the first time, and as such played an important role in their personal growth and recovery process. This is the first study to examine the therapeutic benefits of songwriting in a military population."

"Music therapy treatment is increasingly being used to promote health, enhance quality of life, and improve functioning in military personnel, but evidence on the use of music interventions with military service members is still emerging. The purpose of this scoping review was to synthesize the available literature regarding music therapy treatment with military personnel by identifying the types of information available, key characteristics, and gaps in the knowledge base. The review was completed using the methodological framework proposed by Arksey and O’Malley. A total of 27 publications met the criteria for review. The results included anecdotal reports, white papers/ briefs, case studies, historical reviews, clinical program descriptions, and research studies. Both active duty and veteran service members were represented in the literature, and post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury were the most commonly listed conditions among those served. Music therapy services were offered in both group and individual formats, and drumming was the most common music intervention cited. Most publications accurately represented music therapy, and the historical reviews highlighted the connection between the development of the field of music therapy and the use of music with military personnel. Several gaps were identified, including a lack of specificity in reporting, low levels of evidence, and limited inclusion of women service members."

"Based on the growing need for music therapy programming at military treatment facilities and clinics that specialize in the rehabilitation of service members, this article describes a music therapy group protocol and the findings of 201 post-session evaluations. In addition, we present clinical perspectives and recommendations from three music therapists who have facilitated this group protocol on four military bases across the United States. The group session outlined in the protocol is intended as an introduction to music therapy. It familiarizes service members to various music therapy experiences specifically structured to enhance feelings of safety during emotional risk-taking. In addition, the protocol functions as an initial assessment of service members’ responses to the various receptive and interactive music experiences and includes psychoeducation regarding the role of music therapy in an interdisciplinary treatment model. The post-session evaluation data suggest that service members endorsed this introductory group as moderately to very helpful. Perceived benefits included the opportunity to express various emotions and increased awareness of somatic responses through music. A large number of requests for continued music therapy services following the introductory session suggest that the protocol is successful in facilitating understanding in service members regarding the potential benefits of music therapy in interdisciplinary treatment. Feedback from the music therapists indicated that the group protocol is a helpful initial experience for service members to acclimate to music therapy and for music therapists to learn about their patients’ specific needs to inform subsequent treatment."

"In recent years, there has been increased demand for music therapy services within military treatment facilities to treat combat-related injuries. This demand is partly due to increased research output related to music interventions in neuro-rehabilitation as well as an increased prevalence of signature injuries including traumatic brain injury and posttraumatic stress disorder for which interdisciplinary patient-centered care is recommended. The complexity of traumatic brain injury, posttraumatic stress, and military service itself presents challenges for music therapists when creating patient-centered program models. As military healthcare increases access to new treatments as a standard of care, it is important for music therapists to provide descriptions of effective treatment models in military settings. Outlining established music therapy models of care is essential to the successful addition of music therapy in the treatment of service members’ complex injuries. This paper outlines current program models at two facilities, the National Intrepid Center of Excellence at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and Intrepid Spirit Center at Fort Belvoir."

"Music therapy has a long history of treating the physiological, psychological, and neurological injuries of war. Recently, there has been an increase in the use of music therapy and other creative arts therapies in the care of combat injured service members returning to the United States from Iraq and Afghanistan, especially those with complex blast-related injuries. This case report describes the role of music therapy in the interdisciplinary rehabilitation of a severely injured service member."

Program evaluation was used to determine the feasibility of standardizing: (1) music therapy across multiple sites through individual and group templated notes in TBI Portal, and (2) workload reports across creative arts therapies. This presentation aims to demonstrate that clinical and administrative standardization can be applied at different sites to inform best practices of clinical protocols and administrative procedures. 

Creative arts therapists (art therapists, dance/movement therapists, and music therapists) administer assessments and interventions that support the holistic well-being of military families affected by traumatic brain injury (TBI) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Through participation in the Creative Forces: United States National Endowment for the Arts Military Healing Arts Network, military families discovered strengths, inspired connections, and improved understanding of their relationships. Creative arts therapies (CATs) motivated engagement, which ultimately boosted family resilience. CATs are an integral part of interdisciplinary care to address behavioural and rehabilitative conditions of military families impacted by TBI and PTSD. Future research should examine the efficacy of creative arts therapies in improving resilience in military families.

This video features Donna Betts, Clinical Research Director for Creative Forces; Dr. Joke Bradt, board-certified music therapist and professor and Director of the PhD in Creative Arts Therapies program at Drexel University; and Rebecca Vaudreuil, board-certified music therapist and Lead Music Therapist for Creative Forces.

Creative Forces®: National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Military Healing Arts Network intends to provide $2.5 million in new research funding to support feasibility/pilot studies and subsequent randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) or other large-scale studies to address priority research questions identified by Creative Forces in art therapy and music therapy. The primary goal of the RCTs or other large-scale studies is to yield generalizable findings about the benefits of including art therapy or music therapy in common clinical practice.

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