I completed my rotation on the PSU last week. I worked with patients pre-op and post-op. One common goal was decreasing anxiety and pain. During rounds I identified who was going to surgery and assessed their coping prior to the procedure. I often used music as distraction or relaxation to decrease pre-op anxiety.
During post-operation I was there to help with pain management. I would educate patients with pain management techniques using music. I incorporated iso-principle and guided imagery during interventions. Upon arrival I asked the patient to rate their pain (using Wong Baker Faces or Likert Scale). I assessed music preference and a place they like to go to relax. With the Q-Chord, I provided patient preferred music using iso-principle and led into the guided imagery. In my experience, iso-principle and guided imagery was effective in decreasing pain as evidenced by a decreased pain level rating following the intervention.
I love the feeling of going into a patient's room and already having their preferred music. Music learning doesn't take up a majority of my time anymore, I can dedicate it to learning medical concepts and treatment plans. As Olivia put it, we are a personal pandora station to patients. :)
