Music therapy in Swedish healthcare: a national overview

Abstract

Music therapy in national Swedish healthcare is a developing area due to international and national research together with clinical practice, information, and persistence. Swedish healthcare, however, differentiate across the country, including patients’ ability to receive music therapy interventions. This may be caused by uncertainty around the country about what music therapy is, inexperience of results from music therapy, unfamiliarity of in which areas music therapy can be helpful, and hesitation about degree of evidence. Unfortunately, this uncertainty causes difficulties for patients around the country. Equal care is not achievable as long as the attitude to, and the possibility of being offered music therapy, as well as access to trained music therapists, varies.
In contrast to this, it is also described how music therapy has, for more than 20 years, had an obvious place within a national specialist care unit.