Music therapy in Greece and its applications in dementia and end-of-life care — Giorgos Tsiris & Christina Kalliodi

Ειδικό ένθετο | Η μουσικοθεραπεία στην άνοια και την φροντίδα στο τέλος της ζωής: Μεσογειακές προοπτικές

Τεύχος 12 (2) 2020 – Report (first published on 17 October 2020)

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Music therapy in Greece and its applications in dementia and end-of-life care

Giorgos Tsiris

Queen Margaret University; St Columba’s Hospice Care, UK

Christina Kalliodi

Echo Music Psychotherapy Center; Angels of Joy, Greece

ABSTRACT

In this report we focus on music therapy in Greece and its applications in dementia and end-of-life care. Initially we offer an overview of music therapy in the country and outline key developments in terms of professionalisation, education, research and scholarship. Exploring these developments from a critical perspective, we acknowledge contemporary debates and their implications for the advancement of the field. This exploration offers a platform for understanding the current applications of music therapy in dementia and adult end-of-life care in Greece. We provide examples of recent projects and initiatives alongside broader considerations regarding the status of dementia and end-of-life care. We conclude by offering some perspectives for future potential developments in the field.

KEYWORDS

music therapy, Greece, dementia, end-of-life care, palliative care

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHIES

Giorgos Tsiris, PhD, MMT, is Senior Lecturer in Music Therapy at Queen Margaret University and Arts Lead at St Columba’s Hospice Care, Edinburgh. He is the founding editor of Approaches, and has served as joint coordinator of the Palliative and Bereavement Care Network of the British Association for Music Therapy (BAMT) and representative of the Greek Association of Certified Professional Music Therapists (ESPEM) at the European Music Therapy Confederation (EMTC). Giorgos has worked as music therapist with dying adults and their families in palliative care contexts, and he has led numerous health promotion and death education initiatives. [gtsiris@qmu.ac.uk] Christina Kalliodi ΜΑ, NICU, is a music therapist and advanced trainee psychotherapist with post-qualification training in NICU and postpartum music therapy as well as paediatric palliative care. She is the founder of the Echo Music Psychotherapy Center that provides music psychotherapy sessions to children and adults. She also collaborates with the non-profit organisation “Angels of Joy” designing and implementing their NICU music therapy programme in the Aglaia Kyriakou paediatric hospital in Athens. She has served as the president of ESPEM and its representative at the EMTC. [christina.kalliodi@nxw.gr]