Happy Holidays!
Here we are: at the end of 2020!
As I think over this past year, I feel overwhelmed by the collective loss of normalcy that we have all experienced.
Simultaneously, I feel overwhelmingly grateful for our clients, patients, business partners, and colleagues, for sticking by us through these very hard, yet very meaningful times.
Now more than ever, we want to express our gratitude for you, your families, your passion for the services we offer, and for your faithfulness to our company.
We wish you nothing less than joy, happiness, and togetherness with the ones you love this season and in the new year.
Stay well, stay healthy, and please let us know how we can continue to support you.
With sincere gratitude and love,
Fall 2016 Event Schedule
SEPTEMBER 2016
09.23.16 – Falls Prevention Day at Shepherd Center – (flyer: falls-prevention)
09.24.16 – Falls Prevention Day at West Cobb Regional Library
09.27.16 – Wellspring International Women’s Symposium, “The Impetus of Grief”
OCTOBER 2016
10.02.16 – Northside Perinatal Loss “Walk to Remember”
10.04.16 – Helping Mamas “Thrive” Event
10.10.16 – MMT presents at Georgia Health Care Association’s Activity Director Annual Meeting
NOVEMBER 2016
11.07.16 – Georgia Health Care Association’s Activity Director’s Training
11.11.16 – The Alchemy Sky Foundation Veteran’s Day Fundraiser
11.12.16 – MMT Vision Casting Retreat
Another Year of Amazing …
I will never forget the day this summer …
… that I received a phone call from the mother of a 13-year-old who had a terminal diagnosis. “I know that music therapy is effective for my child, but we cannot afford services on top of all of the medical bills. Is there a way that you can help?”
Because of our partnership with Wellspring International, my answer was, “Yes, we can help. We will have a music therapist come out to your home this week and begin services at no cost to you and your family.”
We received word last Friday that our grant-funded music therapy program, Songs of Hope, will be funded for the next fiscal year by Wellspring International (October 1, 2016 through September 30, 2017).
What does this mean for Atlanta?
It means that hospice patients and their families, bereaved children, and refugees that are currently residing in Atlanta, will all have access to music therapy services at absolutely no cost to them.
It means that patients and their families can be supported during their darkest and most difficult times. It means that children can begin their healing process and have a supportive presence throughout their grief and loss journey. It means that refugees of all ages and from all over the world can receive support during some of life’s hardest transitions.
How has Songs of Hope already made in impact in Atlanta?
One of our partner hospice companies, Ark Hospice, says this of the Songs of Hope Music Therapy Program:
Our Ark Hospice team is truly so thankful for the services that MMT has provided to our patients and families. We have seen how their calming presence and therapeutic sessions have improved our patients’ lives. They’ve helped our patients with pain management, encouraged healthy coping skills, improved their quality of life and have facilitated emotional expression, reminiscence, and life review.
They also served many of our patients individually, and one particular patient struggled through a period of depression related to feeling purposeless in life. As Sam continued to meet with her and connect through music, he was able to help restore some confidence in her spiritual purpose and was able to provide healthy distraction from her anxiety and physical pain. He taught her coping skills that she was able to use when our team was not there to provide reassurance. She always talked about how much she enjoyed his visits and how she felt calmer and more at peace as a result.
Another patient was unable to speak English – Spanish was her native language. Erin quickly volunteered to provide services to her and was able to play Spanish hymns and folk songs. Though this patient was nonverbal and Erin was only able to provide a few sessions before she was off of hospice services, her family was extremely appreciative and truly believed that her quality of life was greatly improved during her final weeks of life. They even asked Erin to play for her Memorial Service.
I know that these brief stories cannot adequately capture all that MMT had done, but I hope that they provide a snapshot of how music therapy has impacted our hospice patients throughout their end-of-life journeys. Thank you again for all that you do at Metro Music Therapy!
We are honored, humbled, and thrilled to be able to continue our partnership with Wellspring International in order to make a positive impact in the lives and hearts of the people of Atlanta.
Now Hiring FULL-Time Music Therapist!
08.11.16 – NOW HIRING FULL-TIME MUSIC THERAPIST IN ATLANTA!
Location: Atlanta, GA
Start Date: August 29, 2016
Hours: Full-time position; hourly pay with potential to become salaried
Position Description: MMT team member will provide individual and group music therapy services and community support services to clients of all ages located throughout the Metro Atlanta area
Populations Served in this Position: Hospice patients, bereaved children and families, refugees, in-home pediatric clients, at-risk youth in residential facilities, adults with traumatic brain injury, memory care patients in ALF/NH facilities
Job Requirements:
- Must be an MT-BC
- Must be Licensed to practice MT in Georgia
- Completed Criminal Background Check
- Must be willing to work some evenings and occasional weekends
- Willingness to travel (paid travel time & some mileage reimbursement)
- Ability to work cooperatively with an Interdisciplinary Treatment Team
- Hospice experience preferred
Salary: Hourly pay; Commensurate with experience
Download Application here:
Application for Employment – PDF
Application for Employment – Word Document Form
Please send completed application and resume to:
Mallory Even, LPMT, MT-BC, Certified NICU MT
Owner & Director, Metro Music Therapy
Mallory@metromusictherapyga.com
Children’s Grief & Loss Groups – Fall 2016
We are so excited to announce the start of our Fall 2016 Children’s Grief & Loss Groups!
Children affected by the death of a loved one can experience a wide array of emotions and feelings that are often too complicated for them to process on their own.
Our Board-Certified Music Therapists have specialized training in grief & loss music therapy. We lead music therapy groups which are designed to carefully and intentionally help each child move through the stages of grief in a safe, creative, and caring environment.
These Fall 2016 groups will take place on Wednesday evenings with Kally Ramminger.
Session Dates: Wednesdays (8/10/16 – 11/02/16)
Session Times: 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Session Location:
Peachtree Corners Baptist Church
Room D130
4480 Peachtree Corners Circle
Peachtree Corners, GA 30092
Register here!
MMT & Northside Hospital
Metro Music Therapy is thrilled to announce the details of their newest project that is being completed with the H.E.A.R.T. strings Perinatal Bereavement and Palliative Care office at Northside Hospital.
The MMT team and H.E.A.R.T. strings have been working for months to write original scripts and original music for a Relaxation CD for parents who have lost or are anticipating the loss of their baby.
The CD will be finished in the Fall of 2016 and once completed, will be available for public purchase. Proceeds will benefit H.E.A.R.T. strings patients at Northside Hospital.
You can learn more about the bereavement services Metro Music Therapy offers here. Click here to learn more about the H.E.A.R.T. strings Perinatal Bereavement and Palliative Care program.
5 Dos and Don’ts for Advocacy in the Community
- DO validate a person’s perceived idea of music therapy. Hear me out… the quickest way for someone to shut down in a conversation about music therapy is to immediately negate their perception of our field. How many times have you caught yourself saying “well actually….”? Try to sincerely validate one’s perception before diving into conversation about any misconceptions they may have.
- DON’T start rambling off a list every population you work and/or goals you work on when you describe your role as a therapist. Sometimes simplicity is key. Try making your answer as concise and understandable as possible without lots of MT jargon! Exhibit A: I help hospice patients control their pain with music-assisted relaxation. Trust me, it’ll open the door to many questions that will allow you to further explain!
- DO stay up to date with research. This is easier said than done- if you’re like me (hey! Kally here), reading studies can sometimes be tedious and time-consuming. BUT- reading and knowing about the latest research in music therapy is not only valuable as a clinician, it can also be really helpful when advocating for music therapy. How? Glad you asked! I just recently read a few studies that focused on a particular intervention for a type of patient that I was working with, which seamlessly translated into a really meaningful, rapport building conversation with the patient’s nurse when speaking with her about how the patient was doing! Any time you can show or explain that there is research to back up what you are doing, the easier it will be for other professionals to understand the value of music therapy. Note: This may not be true for every profession in every circumstance. This is simply what my experience has been as a music therapist working with other medical and healthcare professionals. Proceed with caution.
- DON’T get defensive and frustrated. As I watch and communicate with music therapists from around the country, I’m often shocked by how defensive some of my fellow professionals get by someone not knowing what music therapy is or not defining it correctly. The only way this will ever change is if we take a step back, take a deep breath, and become productive (not defensive or frustrated) in conversations to work toward our goal of helping people to understand music therapy and the work we do as music therapists. Or as our Assistant Director Sam, likes to say- MAYBE WE JUST NEED TO EAT A SLICE OF HUMBLE PIE EVERY ONCE IN AWHILE.
- DO create healthy, respectful relationships with other healthcare professionals. In a field where we are constantly advocating for our services, it can sometimes be tiring and frustrating when we feel like our voices are not being heard or that we are not on the same page as our coworkers. Creating healthy, respectful, and genuine relationships with others is so important—even if it’s not the easiest thing to do.
So I leave you with a challenge- try to implement one of these strategies the next time you find yourself advocating for music therapy. Which will likely be tomorrow. 🙂
This post is a part of the 2016 AMTA/CBMT Social Media Advocacy Month. Head over to the project website to read more advocacy blog posts! #mtadvocacy
Music Therapy and iPods
A few weeks ago, Sam and I had the honor of traveling to St. Simons Island to attend the Georgia Health Care Association’s Annual Social Worker’s Meeting. We were invited to this conference to view the film, Alive Inside, with the conference attendees, and we presented immediately after about the benefits of music therapy for patients and residents in long-term residential care. I want to tell you what we observed, learned, and have taken away from this experience!
First and Foremost, let’s address the elephant in the room: Why do Music Therapists get so fired up about the film, “Alive Inside,” and the hype surrounding it? If you are a music therapist, you know what I mean. If you are not a music therapist, you might be confused as to why our field is a little on edge about this film. I think our collective defensiveness is based off of this simple idea: the common public perception is that the Music & Memory program IS Music Therapy. Many friends and family members have been thrilled to share the news of the film with us, saying, “This reminded me of you and of the work you do!” — and while that should be a compliment, we get defensive because our field is often misunderstood.
During our presentation, I told the room of social workers that as a musician, I was excited to see the seniors in the film receive access to their favorite music. As a music therapist, however, I saw missed opportunities to address clinical goals such as reducing isolation, increasing opportunities for socialization, memory recall, verbal processing, making emotional connections with family members, life review, and improving overall quality of life. This is why the iPod program is not a replacement for music therapy services.
One example of this “missed opportunity” involved Henry, the elderly gentleman with Alzheimer’s. The facility staff described him as being confused and isolated most of the time, a very typical description of any individual with dementia or Alzheimer’s. When the staff placed the headphones on Henry’s ears and began playing his favorite music, Henry became “alive” – he truly lit up. His affect became bright and his eyes flew wide open. He began singing (beautifully), and then recalled memories about the music he was hearing. So why would I call this a missed opportunity? If you watch the room while Henry is having this experience, you see other residents sitting around him, craning their necks with genuine interest to see what Henry is doing. You see Henry, a man who is typically isolated, becoming even more isolated while he closes out the world to listen to his music, completely by himself. I saw this moment as an opportunity to send in a board-certified music therapist to facilitate a group session which would incorporate everyone in the room in any capacity. Henry would then be able to share his memories and experiences with his peers – something that is nearly impossible for him to do when his memory is not livened by the music.
So, Music Therapists should be defensive then, right? I don’t believe so. This film shows us the positive power that music holds over our minds and memories. I wholeheartedly believe that every human should have access to their favorite music, and should be able to listen to it whenever they want. I also believe that Music Therapy is an effective clinical treatment option and – hear me – should not be implemented in a unit or facility all day every day. We work on clinical treatment goals and our patients and clients get exhausted. They need a mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual break. Just as a physical therapist shouldn’t be with a patient all day every day in order to let the body rest and restore before the next session, we can’t be with a patient 24/7. Music Therapists listen to me carefully: we cannot have it both ways. Let’s be very careful not to contradict ourselves. We can’t ask the world to view our services as something different than music entertainment (which it is!) and also get upset or offended when a facility brings someone or something in to act as entertainment. So we shouldn’t be defensive when a facility with whom we work brings in an iPod program, as long as that program isn’t meant to replace music therapy services (if it is, we need to better educate on the differences between the two, and the exclusive benefits of both).
This is why I believe every facility will benefit from having a music entertainment program (be it iPods, live musicians, etc) AND a music therapy program. People need to listen to music leisurely and for entertainment, and in a separate time and place, patients and clients with any diagnosis should have access to music therapy services to address their treatment goals. It shouldn’t be a choice between one or the other – it should be both.
Music Therapists, we have come a long way in the past 60-70 years. Think about how much further we can go if we were to view music entertainment programs as allies, and not enemies!
*Want to learn more about approaching and educating facilities on the differences between an iPod program and Music Therapy services? Attend the MMT Academy Spring 2016 course entitled, “Music Therapy & iPods” taking place in Atlanta and via live streaming on March 13, 2016! More info announced here on 11.12.15
Where will MMT be this Fall?
Check out what we are up to this Fall – join us when and where you can!
{If you need more information about any of the events below, just email us!}
SEPTEMBER 2015:
- 09/19/15 – “Creative Songwriting for the Pediatric Client” CMTE Course @ Mugs on Milton
- 09/25/15 – Falls Prevention Awareness Day @ The Shepherd Center
- 09/26/15 – East Cobb Library Falls Prevention Awareness Event @ East Cobb Library
- 09/26/15 – Counseling Techniques for Music Therapists @ Brio Tuscan Grille | Atlanta, GA
- 09/26/15 – 09/29/15 – Grief & Loss Music Therapy Institute @ Seasons Hospice
OCTOBER 2015:
- 10/10/15 – MMT provides special music for the Remembrance Ceremony at the Light the Night Walk | Centennial Olympic Park
- 10/14/15 – 10/16/15 – MMT presents, “How Music Affects Behavior” @ Georgia Health Care Association Social Workers Annual Meeting | St. Simons Island, GA
- 10/21/15 – MMT presents at the Georgia Conference on Children & Families | Augusta, GA
- 10/30/15 – MMT Leads a Music Therapy Session for Pastoral Care Week @ Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta
- 10/31/15 – Walton County Family Fun Day @ Hammond Park in Monroe
NOVEMBER 2015:
- 11/11/15 – 11/15/15 – MMT Academy Presenting & Exhibiting @ AMTA National Conference | Kansas City, MO
DECEMBER 2015:
- 12/12/15 – 10th Annual Jingle Jog for Autism and All Exceptionalities! {5K & 1 Mile Fun Run} @ Loganville High School