Music therapy is a growing service in hospice care, providing comfort, relaxation, and emotional support to patients and their families. Data from practitioners suggest a number of benefits from music therapy during hospice:
- Improved mood and reduced anxiety
- Reduced pain and improved quality of life
- Enhanced relaxation and comfort
- Increased sense of calm and serenity
- Facilitates emotional expression and processing
- Supports spiritual well-being
Marcos Ahlman is a Music Therapist with ALC Palliative & Hospice Care. His love of music and dedication to his patients and their families is inspiring. We recently had the opportunity to learn more about Marcos and his journey to caring for families at a challenging time.
“I didn’t start out in music,” he says. “I wanted to work with children in adaptive PE, but then I realized sports weren’t really my thing. I went to Illinois State University. My roommate’s girlfriend knew I loved music and suggested the music therapy program at ISU.” Marcos went on to get a degree in Music Therapy, then completed his internship in Puerto Rico.
“I fell in love with Puerto Rico – the people and the place – and ended up staying far longer there than I first intended.” Because his internship was in a hospital, Marcos worked primarily with older adults and came to love this population. “I thought I wanted to work with kids – and I love kids – but I really like working with older adults and their families.” While in Puerto Rico, Marcos went to a second hospital and started a music therapy program there, as well.
We asked Marcos if music has always been a part of his life. “Oh, yes,” he said. “My whole family is musical. At the holidays we would gather around the piano. My grandfather played and we all sang along. When my grandmother became ill, we cared for her at home. Her bed was in the living room. We would sit at her bedside and sing to her. It very was hard to lose her, but I remember the end of her life was filled with music – as it had always been.”
Marcos says he finds working with hospice families especially meaningful. “I spend a lot of time with patients and families at a time when they need support and some relief from stress and sadness. Music does that for them. I play the guitar or the keyboard. We sing or sometimes I just play. Some patients are on hospice for a long time; I get to know them and their families very well. I go into their homes on a regular basis, and you can’t help but get close to people.”
We asked Marcos about the challenges of working with patients who have a terminal illness. “Yes, I see a great deal of loss. The patients I see aren’t going to get better. And that’s hard. What keeps me going is knowing that I helped make a difficult time a little better.”
“Death is something we all go through. It will always be a sad memory. But it doesn’t have to be only a sad memory. I believe that music – and sharing music – helps create a memory that people can look back on and be a little glad.”
It’s never easy to accept death, he says. “I’ve come to look at death as another stage of life. We often just see it as a finite point. A full stop. But like any other stage of life, it is more than that. Dying is just another part of living. And I’m extremely fortunate and blessed to be able to do work that I love and feel that I’m making a difference in people’s lives at a time when they genuinely need it.”
Sadly, the provision of music therapy in hospices is hindered by a combination of factors, including funding constraints, prioritization of other services, complexity of music therapy programs, and variable patient needs. Additionally, practical considerations such as staffing, scheduling, and space/equipment availability can also pose challenges. Addressing these barriers and considerations requires a multifaceted approach, including advocacy for increased funding and creative solutions for integrating music therapy into hospice care.
“I’m also very fortunate to work for an organization like ALC,” he says. “There aren’t many music therapists in hospice programs. ALC is so committed to patients and families. They truly do care and not every organization feels that way. I’m lucky to be where I am and do what I do.”
We couldn’t agree more.