Things are cooling off here in Miami and it’s beginning to feel a lot like….spring? With temperatures in the 70s it’s hard to believe we’re gearing up for the holidays, but we are and I can’t wait!

Things have been moving full speed ahead here at Wholesome Harmonies! We’ve been adding new music therapy clients and piano and guitar students every month, which is fantastic!

All of these new clients have gotten me thinking about  how we here at Wholesome Harmonies take very specific steps to ensure we are providing the highest quality services.

One of those steps is opening the door to facilitate communication with the client’s treatment team.

This step alone has taken the level of service we provide to a whole new level.

How do we do it?

First, we obtain written permission from parents to communicate with the other professionals that are working with the child. This includes speech, occupational and physical therapists, ABA therapists, psychologists, counselors and teachers.

Once we’ve obtained permission to communicate, I ask the parents to bring me copies of all relevant evaluations, therapy reports, and progress notes.

I then review these documents to see what the child is working on in the other therapies and what goals I might be able to target during my music therapy sessions. Although I do have my own goals I create based on my evaluation, sometimes the speech therapist has very specific vocabulary words she is working on with the child. Or the teacher has a certain letter she is working on with the child that week.

Open communication allows me to target those things in a way that is different and also to work on generalization of those skills in another setting.

I also send out my music therapy evaluation and treatment plan to the other professionals on the treatment team. This is beneficial for a number of reasons.

First, it allows the rest of the treatment team to see that the child is receiving music therapy!

Second, it educates. The treatment plan clearly outlines the non-musical goals I am addressing in my sessions, which can clear up any misconceptions about what the purpose of music therapy is.

Finally, it opens up the lines of communication. I make sure to include all my contact information on my reports so the rest of the treatment team can easily contact me if they have any questions or any input (which is always welcome!)

Oh and an added bonus? You just put yourself on the map as a music therapist in your area and may benefit from referrals!

All in all it is a win-win situation.

How do you communicate with your client’s treatment team? Leave a comment below and let us know!

 

 

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