Promote music therapy and the integration of its protocols in the care of the elderly suffering from Alzheimer’s dementia in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté

State : Completed | Number of beneficiaries : 30 people with Alzheimer’s

Duration : 2017/2018, 12 months

Location : in the retirement homes (EHPAD) of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté


Local partner

The SFM (French Society of Music Therapy), is a non-profit organization created in 2012. Its purpose is to promote, organize and supervise clinical and scientific research projects. It thus promotes the meeting of clinical and scientific colleges and collaborates with the health authorities.

Its objectives are:

  • Contribution to the recognition and regulation of the profession of the music therapist and have it registered as a new profession to the national health authorities.
  • Review of existing work concerning the clinical and therapeutic effects of sound on humans and participate in ongoing and future work.
  • Developpment of monitoring and evaluation tools to improve the practice of music therapists.

The SFM wants to be a center of resources, reflection, research and expertise in the field of sound and / or psycho-musical care, thus contributing to the orientation of national and international research:

  • Propose techniques and projects to meet specific requests related to communication disorders.
  • Offer resources and support for the projects of study or research carried out in France.
  • Contribute to clinical and scientific research projects on sound fields in association with universities, clinical fields and different research laboratories.
  • Get the qualifications and skillsets of music therapists in line with the health authorities

The problem

Current research on Alzheimer’s disease does not really come up with efficient drug treatments that can stop the degeneration of neurons. Current treatments can at best slow the progression of the disease, but not stop it.
Regarding the progress of scientific research on the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, it is therefore necessary to consider alternative approaches (drug free), to slow the progression of the disease and improve the quality of people’s lives.
The idea behind this project is to slow the mental degeneration of people in care by working on maintaining their cognitive abilities and their communication skills for as long as possible. Music therapy is one of these innovative approaches to accompaniment.

Objectives

Global objective : Help (after prior evaluation) a large number of people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease or related diseases benefit from this non-pharmacological treatment and demonstrate the effectiveness of music therapy for people with Alzheimer’s disease or related diseases.

Specific objective : To provide musicotherapeutic management of 30 people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease or related diseases in 3 retirement Homes of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté and to evaluate, with the help of adapted tools, the evolution of the therapeutic results in order to get those clinically approved.

Activities carried out

  • Recruitment and training of music therapists for practice and protocol control for musicotherapeutic management
  • Organisation of the care of Alzheimer’s patients
  • Overview and con the care of people with Alzheimer’s disease
  • Scientific elaboration of the protocols resulting from the musicotherapeutic care and diffusion by means of an official website of the SFM: development of a reference website, sharing and diffusion of the protocols used during the support on the site Internet
  • Sensibilisation of general public, medical professionals and public authorities to promote music therapy: organization of a conference, production of brochures and booklets

Beneficiaries

30 people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease or related diseases benefiting from musicotherapeutic care in 3 retirement homes (EHPAD) of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté