Music Therapy as a Way to Enhance Lucidity in Persons with Dementia in Advanced Stages
2005 DOI: https://doi.org/10.29091/9783752001839/004 Seite 25 - 40
9783752001839_004.pdf
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Instead of describing dementia as a permanent state of non-lucidity, where the person is not reasonable and reachable, dementia is described as a condition where periods of confusion and dimness might alternate with clear and lucid mental states. In these states, the person with dementia is present and attentive and is able to interact with others. Theories of person-centred care give a basis of ideas that focus on personhood and see psychosocial needs as important in order to establish a caring environment. The use of songs in individual music therapy is applied to illustrate an approach that enhances episodes of lucidity by using cuing- and arousal-regulating techniques and building up a safe and secure relation to the person with dementia. This leads to important states where the therapist has a possibility to meet psychosocial needs, hereby improving quality of life in persons suffering from dementia in advanced stages. The text is illustrated with case material and is partly based on a PhD thesis (Ridder 2003). The thesis was supervised by David Aldridge and carried out in collaboration with Aalborg University and gerontopsychiatric unit II, nursing home Caritas.