About DrAlice

Dr. Alice Cash is one of the world’s few clinical musicologists. Based in Louisville, Kentucky, USA, she brings to her work over 40 years of professional experience as a college professor, clinical therapist, solo and chamber music performer and composer. Since 1990, Dr. Cash has been in the field of Music Medicine and conducted clinical research at the University of Louisville School of Medicine, under the guidance of Dr. Joel Elkes, Dr. Leah Dickstein, and Dr. Rif El-Mallakh. Her clinical work at the University of Louisville lead to her career in music medicine. In addition to her work with the University of Louisville, Dr. Cash lead the development of using music a hospital setting at Baptist East Hospital, Louisvile, KY. She has founded 3 companies: Healing Music Enterprises, Surgical Serenity Solutions and Crescent Hill Counseling.

Did you know there are Music Medicine apps?

waiting for colonoscopy while listening to jazz colonoscopy. No benzos needed! I’m not sure that the average person who is waiting for surgery knows that there are medical apps that can reduce anxiety and pain perception. My Surgical Serenity Solutions app has been in both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store for awhile now and it is free to download, listen to the samples, and then choose your preferred playlist for $9.99, a one-time payment.

But more people need to know about it and benefit from it.

Music Medicine Apps are available in App Store and Google Play Store

I would love to understand why more people don’t know about it, so that I can do something about it. With all of the computer viruses out there I can understand how some people might be afraid to click on a link they’re not sure of, to download an app that they haven’t heard of. Maybe that’s one reason it can only be downloaded to a phone or a tablet.

But in the long run, every new action must be decided by the pros and cons of the new action. Let’s take a look at the pros:

Pros and Cons of Music Medicine Apps (Hint: there are no cons!)

Soothing, calming music, through headphones or earbuds have been shown to reduce patient anxiety, cortisol levels, and pain perception
Patients who are listening to to our therapeutic playlists often get out of the recovery area sooner as well as the hospital sooner. (there is a $$$ meter running in the recovery area and patients are billed for every 15-minute segment they’re in there!)
When patients are stressed out and anxious, their bodies create a hormone called cortisol. This hormone is damaging to your organs and is intended for brief episodes of fight or flight. When it continuously circulates through your body, organs are damaged. Soothing, calming music can help!
Patients who have used our playlists tell us that they will never have surgery again without our music!
According to our recent study, patients who listened to our playlists through headphones or earbuds typically needed less anxiety and pain medication.

Are there really any CONS to using music in a medical setting through headphones streaming from an app?

There are some doctors who might object to bringing a smart phone into an operating room. But, most do allow it and sometimes they put it into a rubber glove.
Obviously if the surgery is around the head, having headphones or earbuds might not be possible.

Can you think of any other “cons” or reasons not to? If so, please leave a comment. Here’s the link: www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/calm

By DrAlice|March 31, 2025|medical apps|0 Comments

Anesthesiologist adds SSS app while waiting to go into operating room!

Yesterday I was at a local outpatient hospital with a friend who was getting a colonoscopy. The anesthesiologist stopped by her cubicle for just a brief conversation about the procedure and what anesthesia they would use.

She had already told the surgeon that she wanted to listen to our special music through her phone app but was told that it would be up to the anesthesiologist.

When the anesthesiologist arrived he was very open to the idea and was aware that there is more and more research documenting the benefits of therapeutic music as an adjunct to anesthesia. I explained to him that Surgical Serenity Solutions has a free app on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store that can be downloaded in minutes.

Once the app is downloaded the patient-or anesthesiologist in this case- can choose one of five playlists and purchase it for $9.99. The anesthesiologist did this on the spot and said that he though this would be so much better than just playing Spotify on speakers in the OR.

My friend had her colonoscopy and the earbuds were still in her ears and Jazz playlists playing when they brought her back to recovery after the procedure. She remained asleep for another 10 minutes or so but the music was still playing and she looked very peaceful.

Finally the nurse came in, called her name and she woke up with a smile on her face, asking if it’s over. Nobody really wants a colonoscopy but it’s a valuable procedure that can give you an early alert if you have colon cancer. Hopefully my friend is fine thought they did find a polyp that was removed during the procedure.

The anesthesiologist stopped by once more and said that he was so glad to know that this existed and that he planned to let all of his colleagues know about this and encourage them to get it.

The great thing is, hospitals can have this waiting for each patient in the OR by licensing all 5 playlists and giving the patients a choice when they arrive at the hospital that morning. Hospitals can provide high quality bluetooth headphones and use disposable earpiece covers.

OR, if hospital doesn’t want to offer this, they can tell patient about the playlists at their final pre-surgery visit and allow the patient to bring their own Iphone into surgery with the playlist already on the phone, ready to go!

To learn more, go to www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/calm.

By DrAlice|March 22, 2025|Our App is ready to go|0 Comments

Why your hospital can’t just use Spotify or Apple Family Sharing with patients in hospital!

Are you a healthcare facility, or are you affiliated with a healthcare facility? Does your healthcare facility play music for its patients as part of surgery, MRI, or other procedures? Are you currently using a Pandora, Spotify, or Apple Family Sharing account? If so, STOP! You are subject to large fines, UNLESS you purchase a healthcare license from ASCAP or BMI.

https://www.ascap.com/~/media/files/pdf/licensing/classes/healthcare-license.pdf

Now that more and more hospitals are seeing the research studies documenting the power of soothing music through headphones for the patient, it’s really important to know that you’re getting music that is already licensed by the company who is selling the pre-loaded headphones.

Here are the BIG differences between Surgical Serenity Solutions playlists and Spotify, Pandora, or Apple Music:

Surgical Serenity Solutions music has been curated and sequenced specifically for purposes of engaging rhythmic entrainment for the anxious patient entering into surgery or another medical procedure.
Playlists and other music from Spotify, Pandora or Apple Music is intended for entertainment or perhaps relaxation but there is no way to know whether it will produce the desired effect or calming or engaging rhythmic entrainment.
Surgical Serenity Solutions music is already licensed by and to Surgical Serenity Solutions. It is owned by us and is either commissioned by us or performed by Dr. Alice H Cash, a clinical musicologist and concert pianist.
Playlists and other music from Spotify, Pandora, or Apple music requires a healthcare license from ASCAP or BMI. What you will pay for this license is just for that license and doesn’t include any type of player, headphones, earbuds or specific therapeutic playlists.

Waiting for a C-section.

For the patient of course you always have the option of creating your own personal playlist. But a physician of any kind cannot create a playlist and use it with his patients, without a license to play this music from ASCAP or BMI.

I have met with physicians recently who confirmed that they had no idea this law exists and of course want to use the licensed Surgical Serenity Solutions. To talk with us, please go to www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/contact-us.

When I had the idea to create pre-loaded headphones back in 2005, I learned about how medical facilities were mainly using music chosen by the surgeons for the surgeons. I didn’t understand why they wouldn’t give the patient soothing music through headphones. Some surgeons knew intuitively that this was a good idea but most surgical staffs did not have the time or the know-how to create playlists that would be soothing and comforting for the patient and would take them through pre-op into surgery, through surgery, and then into recovery.

And then music became digitized and MP3 players or iPods were an option. And then Pandora and Spotify and Apple Family Sharing came along and some hospitals had music therapists or nurses or even surgeons who started making some playlists for surgeons. For a decade or more this was a growing phenomenon. During that time Surgical Serenity Solutions was marketing to patients and they were buying our pre-loaded headphones and taking them in to their surgeries.

Around 2018-19, just before Covid hit, Surgical Serenity Solutions started marketing primarily to hospitals and in the course of making that switch, I learned that ASCAP, the national organization that licenses all music, had decided to create a healthcare license that hospitals could purchase for a nominal fee in order to create their own playlists to offer patients. As of January 1, 2019 hospitals were required to purchase a healthcare license in order to use Pandora, Spotify or Apple Family Sharing.

The problem with this option is that music therapists usually don’t have the time and surgeons and nurses don’t have the know-how to choose music that will result in reduced anxiety and pain perception.

Elderly patient wearing headphones after surgery

Woman relaxed wearing headphones before surgery

So a great alternative is to purchase Surgical Serenity Solutions (SSS) pre-loaded headphones because:

the music is legal to use because it is commissioned and owned by SSS, in the public domain, performed by myself, a concert pianist, or already licensed by me for sale.
the music is scientifically chosen and shown to engage rhythmic entrainment, reduce anxiety and lower pain perception.

Of course if you want to buy a license for your hospital or Ambulatory Surgery Center, you can do that. But most busy surgeons simply don’t have the time to do that and music therapists typically don’t work with surgical patients by creating playlists for them to use in the perioperative period.

If YOUR hospital or center wants to learn more, you can go to https://www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/preloaded-headphones-for-hospitals/

For a white paper that I wrote for physicians about the benefits of music for patients, go to https://www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/4-reasons.

If you have any questions at all please contact me immediately by filling out the form at https://www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/contact-us/. We look forward to answering all of your questions and helping you and your patients to understand the benefits of music during surgery and provide you with ready-to-go pre-loaded headphones that have already been proven effective to hundreds and thousands of patients. Our music is also available to license for hospital so that patients could bring their own bluetooth headphones and stream our surgical playlists. You can go HERE to hear samples of this music.

Step into the future of music with surgery and hospitals providing the best in scientifically curated and sequenced music! Surgical Serenity Solutions is the future!

And NOW: SSS announces our Pre-loaded MP3 players for Hospitals

Our MP3 players are each pre-loaded with one of our proprietary, therapeutic playlists! Because they are more cost-effective when purchased in bulk and co-branded for each hospital, hospitals can afford to GIVE each patient their own MP3 player to take home for continued recovery in the comfort of their own home. Clear HERE to fill in your hospital’s information so that we can set up a call to provide you with the very best package for your hospitals!

By DrAlice|March 19, 2025|Apple Family sharing, Healthcare License to play music|0 Comments

18089763 © Jhdt Stock Images Llc | Dreamstime.com

Two surgeons preparing for surgery

When we first started creating preloaded headphones and curating our soothing, therapeutic playlists, our focus was exclusively on the perioperative period, pre-surgery, during surgery, and after surgery. We knew that it would probably also help with dental work, but the primary target was anxious surgery patients.

I remember vividly the first time I stood up at a business meeting to talk about my idea for about 2 minutes. As soon as I finished, the room started buzzing with people telling me all of the uses that immediately came to mind for them, including dentistry, detached retinas, and childbirth!

That was in 2009. Today, not only are we helping patients through chemotherapy, kidney dialysis, ketamine infusions and simple blood draws. Basically, anything that increases a patients anxiety before a procedure.

Why do you get so anxious before these procedures? Let me count the ways:

Fear of pain
Fear of medical mistakes
Fear that procedure won’t help
Fear of pain
Fear of making it worse
Fear of embarassing self
Fear of pain

So you see that anticipated pain is the biggest reason usually. In the case of surgery, people are afraid of going under general anesthesia for fear that they will never wake up!

Our therapeutic playlists work by using curated music that engages rhythmic entrainment. When the process of rhythmic entrainment kicks in, a person’s muscle begin to relax, the heart rate slows and stabilizes and the breathing slows and becomes deeper and more rhythmic.

The patient needs to have their own music, coming through preloaded headphones or earbuds and utilizing either the music already on their headphones or MP3 player or streaming with bluetooth from our app.

Interested in getting this system going in your hospital? Just go to this link and fill out the form and we’ll set up an appointment right away!

From a recent customer:

“Dr. Alice Cash has created a simple but effective device allowing anyone having surgery to have a better preoperative experience -typically experiencing less pre-operative anxiety, the need for less anesthesia, and subsequently less post-op pain and anxiety. Both individuals and medical facilities are now utilizing her unique surgical serenity pre-loaded mp3 headphones. As a surgery nurse, I can definitely recommend Dr. Cash and her products.”

Susi Roos,Evicting Cancer, Lake Villa, IL

If you’re ready to buy, you can go dirently to the website and get either the preloaded headphones or preloaded MP3 players!

By DrAlice|February 11, 2025|Surgical Serenity Music Uses|0 Comments

Understanding why music for surgery is different from other uses

Music during surgery is different from other uses of music in the hospital. So much of the reason that patients use music in a hospital is for comfort, decreasing anxiety, and lowering pain perception. When patients are listening to music before surgery they experience comfort, lowered anxiety and pain perception, but DURING the actual surgery the patient is not listening to the music but they are hearing it and their body is responding to the tempo and rhythm of the music because it is coming directly into the brain through headphones.

During surgery, is the patient actually hearing the music?

When a patient is under general anesthesia, they aren’t really “listening” to the music, but they are definitely hearing it. Their body is responding to it through a process called rhythmic entrainment and rhythmic entrainment helps to keep the heartbeat and breathing stable and steady. When these body rhythms are stable and steady, the muscles are relaxed naturally and the body doesn’t require as much anesthesia or anxiety medication.

At what point does patient begin hearing the music again after surgery?

music through headphones during hip replacement surgery

Patient awakening from surgery using the surgical serenity headphones

When the patient is coming out of anesthesia they wake up hearing the same soft, soothing, and steady music that they went to sleep to and it orients them immediately. Many times patients wake up for surgery and are confused and sometimes combattive because they don’t know where they are and they feel unsafe. Especially if they should wake up prematurely, it can be frightening and terrifying. Hearing soothing music that is somewhat familiar (by then) can help patient either go back to sleep or wake up calming. This alone is a huge benefit.

Elsewhere in the hospital, music is being used to calm and comfort that patient. Most patients receiving actual music therapy and interacting with a music therapis are conscious and not in acute pain. Music therapists tend to use music that is familiar for each patient. Occasionally they use improvisational techniques with the patient.

Will an operating room actually allow a live musician to play during surgery?

Dr. Harvey plays piano during eye surgery for his friend. Surgery is a different process and requires a different approach. Very few operating rooms would allow a music therapist in the room while a patient is being put to sleep, operated on, or slowly brought back to consciousness. This is where Surgical Serenity Solutions comes in. Our music has been specifically curated and sequenced to go through the surgical process, the perioperative period, with the patient. Our music has been curated to engage rhythmic entrainment from the moment the patient begins listening through headphones or earbuds. If you are interested in know more about this or are ready to order for your hospital or clinic, just go to www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/contact-us.

By DrAlice|December 4, 2024|Hearing vs Listening|0 Comments

Veteran’s Day and the importance of music

Veteran’s Day is SUCH an important holiday and observance for the USA. The men and women who have fought and labored in many other way for the peace and prosperity that our country enjoys, deserve to be honored on this important day.

Music has always played an important roll in the military and every branch of the military to this day has their own band, orchestra, chorus and smaller specialty groups like jazz bands, Big Band style bands and even classical chamber music ensembles.

The Robley Rex V.A. hospital here in Louisville, KY has a brass band ensemble composed of various surgeons, and physicians at that hospital. They play at parties, graduations and other functions and call themselves Top Brass. I think this is so clever and they really enjoy getting out of their medical scrubs and entertaining both colleagues and patients.

The Birth of Music Therapy

The modern-day field of Music Therapy actually began in a Veteran’s hospital in Kansas. It was toward the end of WWII, late 40’s, and in this Veteran’s hospital were many men suffering from what was called “shell shock” or “battle fatigue.” Today, these same men might be diagnosed with major depression or PTSD.

Each week, volunteers of various kinds would come to visit the men and try to engage them in calming, social interaction. Apparently the only volunteers that were successful with the Veterans were the musicians who came with Big Band music ensembles and played the music that brought back very positive memories of a happier time.

This behavior did not go unnoticed. When the musicians would come, men who never raised their heads or their eyes, would raise their hands, looks toward the musicians, sometimes smile, and sometimes would even sing along, or sway to the music! The nurses and doctors were astounded by this phenomenon but it happened weekly and was a dependable moment of healing and progress for the veterans.

With a few years, there was a new rehabilitation specialy in medicine; it was called Music Therapy!

Veteran’s Hospitals and Surgical Serenity Solutions team up to help Veterans

In 2014 Veterans Hospitals began doing business with Surgical Serenity Solutions. Our first product purchased by the hospitals was our preloaded headphones for surgical patients. Our first hospital VA customer purchased 100 of these headphones, loaded with the Classical Playlist. The patients understood that this music engaged rhythmic entrainment better than other music they might have thought they preferred such as popular music or country music. We educated patients and staff about the fact that purely instrumental music with a slow, steady pulse works best to get the patient through surgery with the least anxiety and least amount of pain perception.

MP3 Player with Jazz Playlist and hospital branding Music for Memory Care Ten years later, in 2024, Surgical Serenity Solutions has gotten into Veterans Hospitals around the country. We now have 5 distinct playlists and 4 paths to provide our music to hospitals, surgery centers, birthing centers, chemotherapy, dialysis centers and pain clinics. Our playlists include Classical, Jazz, New Age, Lullabies, and Memory Care.

Patients can access our music with the original preloaded headphones, small MP3 players, downloadable apps, or each playlist can be licensed for a one-time annual fee.

A personal note

Every year when Veteran’s Day comes around I remember my dear father and how much our country meant to him. Although he survived WWII and the Battle of the Bulge, he was wounded and had a long and difficult recovery in the hospital in London.

Music was one the things that got him through, I think, and he loved teaching his children the songs that they sang while marching through Europe. We children loved hearing about his adventures and learning the songs they sang like “Do Your Ears Hang Low?” and “A Capital Ship.” I later learned that one of the reasons that soldiers sing while they march is because it keeps their energy level high and helps them to march in sync for very long distances.

My great-grandfather, James Grier White

Because my dear father, and my great-grandfather on his mother’s side were proud veterans and because of all the work we do with V.A. hospitals around the country, veterans will always have a special place in my heart.

How to get our Surgical Serenity Solutions music and products into YOUR hospital or clinic.

If you’re not sure which products might be best for your patient populations, please fill out this form

www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/contact-us

To see all of the hospital products go to

www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/hospitalheadphones

www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/mp3players

To download one or more of our playlists and hear samples of each, go to www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/calm

To all the living Veterans, thank you for your service!! To all the fallen warriors, thank you for paying the ultimate price for our freedom!!

By DrAlice|November 11, 2024|Veterans and Music Therapy|0 Comments

Researcher presenting his study on Surgical Serenity Solutions preloaded headphones at American Psychiatric Nurses conference

New research study focuses on Surgical Serenity Solutions headphones in behavioral health

A new research study on Surgical Serenity Solutions pre-loaded headphones was presented last week at the national meeting of the American Psychiatric Nurses conference. This is doubly exciting because this study was conducted not in surgery but in behavioral health.

Our headphones were originally created to be used in the perioperative period of surgery: before, during, and after. Quickly, doctors and nurses began realizing all the other places that the headphones could be used.

For many years they have been used in colonoscopies, chemotherapy, labor and delivery and situations that cause anxiety and physical discomfort. But this study was look at situations in which behavioral health (psychiatric) patients were hospitalized and were experiencing extreme anxiety and/or panic attacks.

In these situations in hospitals around the world, psych patients are often given medications (usually benzodiazepines) to calm them and move them past the panic moments. In this study, the researcher gave the patients our headphones with soothing, calming music and put them in a quiet location where they could focus on the music and their breathing.

The good news is that this strategy worked for some of the patients and allowed them to calm down without resorting to medications that work but that can definitely create a dependence on them or even lead to addiction.

What the research says

Here is a close up of the researchers poster presentation. He reports that many of the nurses present at this conference were fascinated with this concept and will hopefully be trying them in their own facilities!

Discover the various ways you can access SSS music...

Reusable Headphones: (these include disposable earpiece covers)
https://surgicalserenitysolutions.com/hospitalheadphones

MP3 Players – Give to the Patient: (branded for your facility)
https://surgicalserenitysolutions.com/MP3players

Free App – Download and Choose Playlist ($9.95 each)

https://www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/calm

License our playlists – Contact Us for a Conversation

https://www.surgicalserenitysolutions.com/contact-us/

By DrAlice|October 19, 2024|Uncategorized|0 Comments

Research in Perioperative Music Medicine

Dr. Cash delivering a lecture at International Music Medicine conference Research in perioperative music medicine, or PMM, is increasing daily. Over the last 15 years I’ve seen studies emerge on the use of Music Medicine, through pre-loaded headphones, in fields as diverse as Oncology, Transplant surgery, Alzheimer’s treatment, pediatric cardiology and burn units. There is no question that the right music has the ability to calm and soothe an anxious patient as well as anxiety medication and without the risk of dependence or addiction to these medications.

As more and more scientific studies come out, my scope of education of medical professionals widens too.

Yesterday was one of those exciting days for me. For years, music was not considered seriously because scientists hadn’t figured out how to measure the ways in which it was administered or measure how much it helped and how exactly it helped. They knew that it made the patient feel better, but they didn’t understand exactly why.

So when I went to work at the University of Louisville School of Medicine in 1990, I was told that there were literally hundreds if not thousands of years of anecdotal reports about the healing powers of music, but very few empiracle studies. My job was to change that! There are so many anecdotal reports about how specific music, through headphones, for the patient, has made a huge difference in the patient’s recovery as a result of the patient going into surgery more relaxed and calm.

An anecdotal report from a patient’s mother

Patient awakening from surgery using the surgical serenity headphones

“My son’s surgery was yesterday. He wore the headset for two hours before surgery and during the procedure. Unlike his last surgery, all went well. Many people were involved to ensure he reacted well to the anesthesia and other medicines provided. They were very happy to let him use the headphones in the operating room. He went into surgery thinking the headset would be helpful in keeping him calm and needing less anesthesia, and he did remain calm after coming around post-op. We believe your music was integral to his good experience. Many thanks! “ Faith Nguyen,Mother.

Recently, this study was published in a journal called “Frontiers in Medicine.” To me, this signifies that it reports on cutting edge procedures and treatments. Here is just a short excerpt of this study”

“Clinical Benefits of Perioperative Music Medicine”

“Surgery is an “indivisible, indispensable part of health care” around the world (1, 2) but it causes significant physiologic stress (3, 4). Neural (autonomic) and humoral (circulating or hormonal) mechanisms primarily involve the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) adrenergic and parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) cholinergic branches of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). Current perioperative interventions used to attenuate these stress responses are primarily pharmacologic (anesthetic and analgesic medications) that are associated with a variety of complications (5). The current epidemic of opioid overuse in the United States is fueled in part by excessive perioperative prescriptions around both minor and major surgery (6, 7). Non-pharmacologic interventions that complement and integrate with pharmacologic interventions in the perioperative setting are thus of critical importance to both decrease psychophysiological stress and decrease opioid use. Perioperative Music Medicine (PMM), defined as listening to pre-recorded music around surgery (8), is an efficacious, safe, and low-cost non-pharmacologic intervention that can be delivered at the point-of-care and reduce opioid use (9–11).”

To read the entire article, click on the link below,

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/medicine/articles/10.3389/fmed.2022.821022/full

At the end of 2024, where we are now, I believe that serious medical and surgical professionals believe that music for the surgical patient is a good idea, but if they have any doubts, this study, along with this large meta-analysis that was published in the highly-esteemed British medical journal “The Lancet” would surely convince them. Click here to read the Lancet meta-analysis. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(15)60169-6/abstract?code=lancet-site

What Surgical Serenity Solutions offers to hospitals

Surgical Serenity Solutions offers therapeutic music playlists in 5 distinct genres. This music has been curated by a clinical musicologist and undergone 3 clinical studies, all of which deemed it powerful at decreasing anxiety and pain perception. The music in available in 4 different formats:

Pre-loaded headphones

Pre-loaded MP3 players

App stores on iPhone or Android

Licensing within hospital departments

For more information, go to www.SurgicalSerenitySolutions.com/contact-us

By DrAlice|October 11, 2024|Perioperative Music Medicine|0 Comments

Is it Music Therapy or Music Medicine?

Do YOU know the difference between Music Therapy and Music Medicine? Many people use the terms interchangeably but they differ in subtle and not-so-subtle ways. Fundamentally, music therapy requires licensed music therapists; music medicine relies on prescriptive pre-recorded music as implemented by other clinical professionals.

Who can practice music medicine and music therapy?

Asian senior woman listening to music with headphones in backyard.

Music Medicine is practiced by a variety of practitioners, including music therapists. The wonderful thing about Music Medicine is that it can be practiced by any clinical professional, including physicians, nurses, physical therapists, hospital chaplains, and even dentists. The only requirement is that it must be implemented by a clinician.

In my case, I am a Ph.D.-level clinical musicologist and a licensed clinical social worker. I have been working in a medical setting for over 30 years, helping patients to use my therapeutic playlists in a surgical setting, before, during, and after surgery.

For our clients, the clinician is usually a nurse or physician.

What does a music therapist do and what credentials must they have?

Music therapists have a Bachelors or Masters in music therapy and are board-certified by their peers. They work in hospitals and clinics and sometimes they work in private practice. Music therapists traditionally work one-on-one with patients but occasionally do group therapy.

Music therapists help thousands of people worldwide every day in hospitals, clinic and home settings. But there are far more people that need music medicine than there are music therapists. That’s where music medicine comes in.

What is required to practice music medicine and what are their credentials?

Music Medicine is therapeutic music that has been pre-prepared for patients undergoing or suffering from a wide variety of medical situations. It is being used daily in surgical suites, pre- and post- surgery suites, chemotherapy, kidney dialysis, labor and delivery, and pain management. Our newest hospital customer is using our music medicine intervention in their ketamine infusion area.

Waiting for a C-section.

Many patients have gotten through their colonoscopies with the help of our playlists loaded on their smartphones. In the situation, the Doctor simply educates the patient about the benefits of going under anesthesia accompanied by therapeutic music that has the tempo of the healthy resting heartbeat, a simple texture, and one that easily engages rhythmic entrainment. Rhythmic entrainment occurs when the pulse of the music synchronizes with the body’s natural rhythms such as breathing and heartbeat. This is clinically important because having stable body rhythms during a procedure is important to the success of the procedure and the health of the patient.

Note that most popular music such as the kind that’s available on Spotify, Apple Music, et cetera, is not intended to be therapeutic and is not likely to engage rhythmic entrainment.

Other uses for our pre-loaded and downloadable devices

The patient in this picture is wearing our headphones pre-loaded with a classical playlist, that has calmed her down with no additional medication. The side benefit is that the headphones also block out other conversations of doctors and nurses, as well as nearby patients who are also waiting for C-sections but without the benefit of soothing music and noise-blocking headphones.

Music Medicine and Music Therapy have both been proven extremely effective at calming anxiety and pain perception and have absolutely no known side effects. If a music therapist is available to work with you, go for that! But music therapists are often in very short supply, especially for things like C-sections, surgery, chemotherapy and kidney dialysis.

This is where Surgical Serenity Solutions headphones, MP3 players, and playlists shine! Hospitals often purchase the MP3 players in great quantity and even give them to the patient after the procedure. Use the links below for more information or to purchase!

How to get Music Medicine going at YOUR hospital

If this sounds like something you want your hospital to acquire, like many VA hospitals, Cleveland Clinic Florida, Johns Hopkins, and Mayo cardiology, just click on a link below.

Reusable headphones: https://surgicalserenitysolutions.com/hospitalheadphones

Give to the patient MP3 players:
https://surgicalserenitysolutions.com/MP3players

License or download our playlists:
https://surgicalserenitysolutions.com/contact-us

By DrAlice|September 23, 2024|Music Therapy or Music Medicine|4 Comments

What’s the big deal about “social proof?”

I am NOT a marketer! Never was, but when I had a great idea back in 2005, to create pre-loaded, cordless headphones for surgery patients, I quickly began to learn some of the nuts and bolts of marketing. I had to get my message out and email marketing was just really getting started.

Prior to that, marketing was done by snail mail, or TV/Radio ads and that was all really super expensive. Luckily, I have had many kind and knowledgeable people along the way who have taught me the benefits of “social proof.” Here’s a simple definition of social proof:

“Social proof is a psychological phenomenon that occurs when people base their actions on the actions of others in an attempt to appear to be behaving correctly in a given situation. It’s the idea that if others are doing something, then one should do it too.”

Recently I talked with a new acquaintance on LinkedIn who is a successful marketer, helping others to build their visibility. He told me that after looking through my website, articles, videos, research and social media posts, it was clear that one thing I have in spades is:

“Social Proof! ✨”

I guess that when you have Social Proof, word gets around faster and your product goes viral? Just this week, I got two inquiries, then purchase from the same hospital in Southern California. Two different staff members, unbeknownst to each other, ordered our headphones for two purposes: one for the original purposes of surgery, both adult and child, and the other for ketamine transfusions. Awesome!!

Here are some of my most recent examples of social proof

Just yesterday I had this response from a physician who had just watched my recent podcast:

“This is one of the very best discussions of scientific studies that have demonstrated how music via headphone or earbuds can be used to reduce anxiety and stress during a wide variety of surgical, medical and dental situations. At the same time, it often reduces the dosage of medications necessary for anesthetic purposes. Especially interesting is that studies of Alzheimer patients have demonstrated that music can be used to stimulate memory.

All without any negative side effects!” –

Getting buy-in from physicians is crucial but we must also get that buy-in from the patients who use them and feel that they make a great difference:

In the last year, I have been invited to be on 7 difference podcasts, so I know that people are buzzing and it is very exciting!!

Does YOUR hospital use the Surgical Serenity Solutions headphones or MP3 players yet? If not, I strongly recommend getting them for your patients. The proof is there, social as well as empirical medical data. Just click on the link below to purchase either the headphones or the MP3 players! Your patients will thank you!

www.SurgicalSerenitySolutions.com/hospitalheadphones

www.SurgicalSerenitySolutions.com/MP3players