Music Therapy Awareness Month

Congratulations Dany Bouchard! Thank you, Dany, and all your colleagues for all the great work you do. Join us in March as we celebrate Music Therapy Awareness Month.

What led you to becoming a music therapist?

I was already a musician and when I reached my thirties, I wanted to study to become a psychologist, so someone told me about the music therapy program (at UQAM at the time, now there's a master's at Concordia). I decided to enroll, with the aim of working in psychiatry afterwards. I thought it would be good to combine both music and mental health. I feel privileged to be working in this field right now.

What is the best advice that someone at the MUHC ever gave you?  

Whatever the technique, 80 per cent of the success of a therapy is due to the therapeutic relationship. Music enhances this bond, as well as non-judgment and the quality of listening. It costs nothing to be kind to the people and patients around us - it's a question of collective well-being.

Tell us about working with your fellow music therapists.

We are seven music therapists at the MUHC, three working in mental health in the Department of Psychiatry. We hold events and meetings with colleagues to update each other on the work we do in our respective fields, and to share the latest developments and knowledge we have acquired in our profession. Whether inpatient or outpatient, we're always on the lookout to improve our services and find a way to provide the best possible follow-up. Unfortunately, some mental health conditions require lifelong follow-up. Fortunately, our services now cover early childhood through to older individuals. Depending on each patient's specific needs, we have several music therapy intervention tools included in the two main approaches to music therapy, i.e. the active method (playing music) and the receptive method (listening to music).

How do you like to relax and unwind after a shift?  

By playing guitar or the piano, sometimes I listen to music and give myself up to the inspiration of the moment to slowly stop time. I like to care for myself in the same way that I care for others. Most people use music to calm their moods and I’m no exception. Otherwise, if things are bad, a good ice cream does the job too! LOL!