A Psychosocial Approach to Conceptualizing Music Therapy Service Provision in Pediatric Hospital Care

Abstract Music therapists working in pediatric hospital settings share common professional challenges relating to role ambiguity, workload burden, and advocacy. A key contributing factor is the problem of articulating the role of music therapists in clinical care along the different stages of a patient’s hospital and health journey. This may result in delayed or inappropriate referrals, subsequently impacting timeliness and effectiveness of music therapy care delivery to those that may derive the most benefit. A psychosocially-oriented model of care framework offers an approach to conceptualizing pediatric music therapy service provision by clarifying distinctions between music therapy supports to address broad-ranging needs.