Good Example Of Research Proposal On Music Therapy Effects On Imprisoned Dementia Patients

Research objectives:

The object is to investigate the effects of music therapy as an aid to increase quality of life in elderly patients with dementia bound in prisons as compared to those receiving standard treatment in prisons and in patients living with families and receiving music therapy. This is a two-dimensional research: comparing effects of music and standard therapy in imprisoned patients and also comparing effects of this therapy on prisoners and non-prisoners. This raises a question: do imprison dementia patients show a better response to music therapy than the rest?

Context:

Dementia is very common in elderly, and the prisons mostly have aged people who have committed crimes due to unemployment, drug abuse or rational temperament. They develop dementia either due to trauma to the brain, vascular dementia due to stroke or as a result of age-related familial or sporadic diseases like Alzheimer’s disease or Lewy Body disease. Whatever the cause for dementia is, it has been studied that some form of music therapy has positive outcomes in improving life of these patients (Smith and Lipe, 1991; Aldridge, 1993; Kneafsey, 1997; Pacchetti et al., 1998) and on cognitive abilities (Smith, 1990; Rauscher et al., 1993; Koger and Brotons, 2000).It is believed that music evokes emotions, and these emotions bring back memory (Oliver Sacks).There are researches on effect of music therapy on dementia and separately on dementia patients in prisons but there has been no effort to apply this therapy on imprisoned patients who are expected to give more positive response than the ones living with families. The aim of this research is to apply this treatment to patients sentenced to life-time or short-time imprisonment as they are not only suffering from mental ill-health bur are also subjected to seclusion from society which has more devastating effect on their psyche.

Research design:

This research is based on two grounds. Firstly, effects of music therapy in dementia patients living outside prison are assessed. Secondly, half of the individuals in prison with dementia were provided with standard rehabilitation therapy, and half were given standard rehabilitation therapy along with music therapy.Assessment of therapy in patients was recorded by self-evaluation from patients, family rating of behavior and therapist rating of mood response to therapy. Face to face questions and assessment are made before and after music therapy by therapist and they can instruct the family members and prison staff to record video of the behavior of patients an hour before and after music therapy. The results are then evaluated.

Research methods:

A mini-mental state examination (MMSE) is done to assess the degree of mental state like short and long term memory, attention span, concentration and language and communication skills. A blood test is done to make sure that other factors (thyroid hormones or vitamin B12 levels) are not responsible for this condition. A specific popular music of that country is selected for all the patients. A questionnaire is prepared for family members and patients; therapist evaluates on his/her visual evaluation. The questions concern about the long term and short term memory, communication skills, participation in activities and sleep and appetite patterns of the patients an hour before listening music and at a time after therapy.

Project management plan:

The project is aimed to be conducted over a three months’ time span. In first month, prisons are surveyed for dementia patients, and the record is taken from hospitals about dementia patients living with families. Consent is taken from families to carry out research. In next month, MMSE and blood tests are carried out. In third month, the research is conducted and three treatments per week were given for a month.

Conclusions:

A significant improvement is expected in the quality of life of dementia patients. An improvement in mood, interactive skills, memory and interest in life is seen from the assessment of family members and video records of activities. The results for prisoned patients receiving music therapy showed greater improvement to those receiving standard therapy. Moreover, a slightly better improvement is expected from patients in prison, and those outside as a gloomier and secluded life in prison is an important factor to affect memory and cognitive functions of the brain.

References

with Dementia. Journal of Ashida, S. (n.d.).The Effect of Reminiscence Music Therapy Sessions on Changes in Depressive Symptoms in Elderly Persons Music Therapy, 170-182.
Fazel, S. (2002). Dementia in prison: Ethical and legal implications. Journal of Medical Ethics, 28, 156-159.
Lipe, A. (1991). Using Music Therapy to Enhance the Quality of Life in a Client with Alzheimer's Dementia: A Case Study. Music Therapy Perspectives, 102-105.
Maschi, T., Kwak, J., Ko, E., & Morrissey, M. (n.d.). Forget Me Not: Dementia in Prison. The Gerontologist, 441-451.
Munk–Madsen, N. (n.d.). Assessment in Music Therapy with Clients Suffering from Dementia. Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, 205-208.
Nayak, S., Wheeler, B., Shiflett, S., &Agostinelli, S. (2000).Effect of music therapy on mood and social interaction among individuals with acute traumatic brain injury and stroke. Rehabilitation Psychology, 274-283.
Papapetropoulos, S. (2006). Family History of Dementia: Dementia With Lewy Bodies and Dementia in Parkinson's Disease. Journal of Neuropsychiatry, 113-116.
Raglio, A., Bellelli, G., &Trabucchi, M. (n.d.).Commentary on the Editorial “Music therapy for dementia”.Maturitas, 413-413.
Raglio, A., &Sospiro, F. (2010).Music therapy in dementia.Non pharmacological therapies in Dementia, 1(1), 1-14.
Vink, A. C., Bruinsma, M. S., &Scholten, R. J. (2003).Music therapy for people with dementia.The Cochrane Library.