Musical Connections: A Descriptive Study of Community-Based Choirs for Persons with Dementia and their Caregivers
Date
2017-04-09
Authors
Anderson, Zachary
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Abstract
This study describes existing community-based choirs for persons with dementia (PwD) and their family caregivers (CGs). Although there is growing interest in choirs for PwD and a number of publications, to our knowledge there has been no effort to compare and contrast these choirs in terms of their structure, programs, and other factors. Thus it is timely and important to gather information about these choirs and their perceived benefits as well as lessons learned. Semi-structured phone interviews were conducted with administrators from 6 community choirs for PwD and CGs. Analyses identified how the choirs were structured as well as the benefits and lessons learned. Results suggest that community-based choirs are a valuable non-pharmacological intervention for both PwD and CGs.
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Keywords
Dementia, caregiver, non-pharmacological, intervention, music, choir, structure, benefits, challenges