University of Alabama

A Survey of Music Therapy Students' Practica Experiences Working in Hospice and Palliative Care Settings

The purpose of this study is to investigate 1) music therapy students� views on death and dying, 2) music therapy students� views on coursework preparation for clinical work in hospice and palliative care settings, and 3) whether or not current music therapy coursework and clinical experience is preparing students adequately for working in hospice and palliative care settings.
The American Music Therapy Association, the largest organization of music therapists from the U.S. and across the world, has an annual publication containing a list of all the honorary, professional, associate, affiliated, retired, and student members that have paid their dues for the year. This publication is sent to all paying members, and contains each member�s address, phone number, and email address. Participants will be selected from this list using only members who have the student or graduate student distinction. Pages 41-139 in the publication contain the contact information of the paying members.
Each participant will be emailed an invitation to participate and the survey link to complete the survey. The survey will be posted on the website Question Pro and will contain questions regarding working in hospice clinical settings and cultural beliefs on death and dying. Participants will be given a month to complete the survey. Once the date for completion has passed, all survey responses will be analyzed.