More than a melody: How music therapy brings comfort and connection at Hennick Bridgepoint

For patients facing some of the most vulnerable moments of their lives — serious illness, chronic pain, cognitive decline or the final stages of life — the Music Therapy Program offers something clinical care alone cannot: comfort, connection and a way to be seen as more than a diagnosis. This is especially significant for Hennick Bridgepoint patients, many of whom are undergoing complex rehabilitation and remain in care for extended periods, making meaningful emotional support and opportunities for engagement essential to their overall well-being.

The Music Therapy Program is woven into palliative care, complex continuing care and rehabilitation. It complements medical treatment by addressing the emotional and psychological dimensions of illness — dimensions that often shape how patients experience recovery, decline and dignity.

Delivered by a trained music therapist, Hennick Bridgepoint’s program weaves music into care in deeply personal ways. Sessions may involve listening, singing, playing simple instruments, reminiscing or simply resting as gentle music fills the room. The goals vary by patient: easing pain, reducing agitation, lifting mood, encouraging movement or helping someone express emotions that words no longer reach.

A 2014 summary of evidence for the effectiveness of music therapy¹ found that it can significantly improve overall and social functioning, reduce symptoms of depression, enhance sleep quality and support motor function in people with conditions such as Parkinson’s disease. Research has also shown that music therapy benefits patients living with serious mental illness and those recovering from complex medical events.

The healing power of music, one patient at a time

The program’s impact is perhaps most powerfully understood through the patients whose days — and often spirits — it helps transform. When physio or occupational therapy feels overwhelming, patients sometimes step back. But music often draws them forward, helping them get out of bed and ready to participate again.

For Brenda, a longer-term palliative patient with mild cognitive impairment, music therapy has become a lifeline. Over time, she’s developed a close bond with her therapist, often requesting familiar songs by Frank Sinatra or Bing Crosby. As she listens, she will sometimes sing softly, and share stories of her childhood, her family and sadness about her illness. “This is the best thing that could have happened,” she told the therapist during one session. Through music, Brenda has found space to laugh, cry and remember.

For Bela, a Portuguese-speaking patient who would spend long afternoons alone, music has bridged language and culture. When the therapist plays traditional Portuguese folk songs, Bela claps, sings along, and shares stories of her life in Portugal. The music has restored a sense of belonging, reminding her of who she was beyond the hospital walls.

And for Martin, a former university professor whose illness has led to periods of confusion and agitation, music has become a powerful form of behavioural support. As his condition worsens, he has grown restless at night, determined to leave the hospital. But when the therapist plays his favourite folk songs while slowing the tempo and guiding his breathing, his body softens. He will close his eyes and sing. In these moments, music helps calm his distress when little else can.

These stories are not isolated. They reflect the everyday impact of a program designed to meet patients where they are — emotionally, cognitively, spiritually and physically.

Supporting the whole person

Music therapy supports not only patients, but also families and staff. Observers describe how patients relax, sleep better, show less pain and rediscover joy — small but meaningful shifts that transform the atmosphere of care. One family member called the therapist “a gifted healer,” adding, “Music therapy is the highlight of my son’s week for quality of life.”

Clinically, the program addresses complex needs. Music therapy can reduce agitation in patients with delirium or dementia, lower the perception of pain, support emotional expression at end of life, and encourage engagement when patients are withdrawn or fatigued. In spiritual care contexts, hymns and sacred songs offer solace. In multicultural settings, music in a patient’s own language reconnects them to identity and memory.

One patient, struggling with pain and fatigue, told the therapist, “When you’ve got a song, it just lifts you up.” Another exclaimed after a session, “This is psychology! You see sick people and make them feel better!”

Family members also notice a difference. One parent of a patient in the complex continuing care unit says the first indications of improvement came through sound. “The first day my son hummed along, I knew we were making progress,” the parent wrote. Later, the son began turning his head toward the door when he heard the therapist’s voice in the hall, moving his feet in time to the music, rediscovering memory and movement through rhythm.

“He reacts to her and shows he remembers new people and their healing role in his life,” the parent wrote.

The sound of philanthropy in action

The Music Therapy Program is able to reach more patients in large part because of philanthropy. Since it started, a gift from Elaine Slater and her family, made it possible to expand the program to offer 18 hours of care to patients throughout the week. But because this program has limited funding through the hospital’s operating budget, it relies on ongoing donor support to reach its patients.

Donor support makes it possible to sustain specialized services that build on standard care, enriching the patient experience with added compassion and connection.

In a hospital where many journeys are long and uncertain, music becomes a constant. It offers patients a way to remember who they are, to feel less alone, and to find moments of peace when they are needed most.

As one patient told his therapist after a session, “You warm the cockles of my heart.”

You can help bring comfort and emotional support to patients during their most vulnerable moments

Your generosity can help ensure more patients experience the proven therapeutic benefits of music — from easing anxiety and pain to improving mood, memory and connection. Donate today. 

¹Kamioka H, Tsutani K, Yamada M, Park H, Okuizumi H, Tsuruoka K, Honda T, Okada S, Park SJ, Kitayuguchi J, Abe T, Handa S, Oshio T, Mutoh Y. Effectiveness of music therapy: a summary of systematic reviews based on randomized controlled trials of music interventions. Patient Prefer Adherence. 2014 May 16;8:727-54. doi: 10.2147/PPA.S61340. PMID: 24876768; PMCID: PMC4036702.