Ms Stephanie Chan, a music therapist at Singapore General Hospital, is sometimes mistaken for \u0022an entertainer\u0022. But the little-known allied health profession, among various functions, can help stroke patients regain their speech through melody and rhythm.
Ms Stephanie Chan, a music therapist at Singapore General Hospital, is sometimes mistaken for"an entertainer". But the little-known allied health profession, among various functions, can help stroke patients regain their speech through melody and rhythm.
Their rapport, as the pair would learn over the next two years, was crucial for his rehabilitation through music therapy. But it took time to build. Even though he also attended occupational, speech and art therapy, his wife Mrs Soh Ling Fong noticed that music therapy with Ms Chan “calmed him down quite a lot”. Her husband would even try to sing along during her sessions.
And with Mrs Soh now being able to catch"at least a few words" from her husband compared with"guessing" what he wanted to tell her in the past, the benefits of music therapy have been two-fold. “I will a song with them. It can be a very simple song, like Happy Birthday. You’ll be surprised that they are able to actually sing out the words. That’s when I will come in with an intervention,” she explained.
Getting him to use his hand to tap along with her rhythm, she then incorporated melody into the words that mimicked the “original” inflection in “ni hao ma” when spoken. Aside from helping Mr Soh regain his speech, Ms Chan was also brought in to help him with apraxia as a result of his stroke. The condition is characterised by an inability to carry out familiar movements and gestures, despite the capacity and desire to execute them.
Music therapist Stephanie Chan guiding Mr Soh Sai Moh to play the hi-hat to a rhythm to improve his coordination and motor skills. Despite the benefits of music therapy, misconceptions about the little-known field in the allied health sector persist. Ms Chan, for instance, is still sometimes mistaken for “an entertainer” when she totes her guitar around the hospital.
Music therapy is, first and foremost, “goal-oriented” and “it’s never about a musical goal”, Dr Tan highlighted. “It's always a non-musical goal and it's always functional.” Music therapist Stephanie Chan with a former patient, known as Le, and her family before she passed away. “I think for such a dire situation, to find something very sweet, it’s kind of beautiful. It really touched me,” she told CNA.
“When it comes to a music therapist, they have a way of understanding a person through a therapeutic process and they can design very individualised ways of using music. So I refer to them quite frequently.”
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