The development of the Person Attuned Musical Interactions modified version (PAMI-M) for UK care home staff working with residents with dementia

Introduction: Dementia can profoundly affect verbal communication and cognition,<br/>but non-verbal communication and music can serve as a crucial and accessible means of connection and self-expression. Person Attuned Musical Interaction (PAMI), originally developed in Denmark, is a music therapy skill-sharing staff training package to promote person-centred attuned non-verbal communication between care staff and residents. This manuscript reports the development of a modified version of PAMI training (PAMI-M) for UK care homes.<br/>Method: The PAMI-M development process consisted of (a) a systematic review, (b)<br/>expert consultations with care staff and the original PAMI researchers, (c) translation of the PAMI manual and adaptation, and (d) testing the PAMI-M manual and online training format in UK care homes.<br/>Results: PAMI-M provides a compact training package covering essential PAMI components. A staff manual and an interactive online training session were developed to facilitate PAMI-M training for care staff, supplemented by fortnightly reflective sessions with a music therapist for further PAMI-M skills development.<br/>Discussion: PAMI-M was designed to be flexible enough to accommodate variations<br/>in staff experiences, attributes, and knowledge, ensuring equal opportunities for its<br/>adoption. Notably, PAMI-M shifted from training music therapists, who then train care staff, to training care staff directly. While significant changes were needed, PAMI-M still emphasises PAMI’s core principles, promoting person-centred, attuned non-verbal communication in dementia care.