Transforming Patient Care Through Music Therapy

        Dr. Kara Smith has received the prestigious Spivack Neuroscience Pilot Award from Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine and the Gertler Neurology Pilot Grant from Boston Medical Center.

        Delirium, a serious state of confusion leading to serious health consequences, can often occur when patients with Parkinson’s disease or Alzheimer’s disease become hospitalized.

        In this innovative research, Dr. Smith will advance a personalized music therapy intervention to help hospitalized patients with these conditions who are at risk for delirium. The study is currently enrolling patients admitted at Boston Medical Center. Participants undergo live sessions with a board-certified music therapist and participate in daily personalized music listening experiences. The goals of this research are to refine the music protocols to optimize their benefit, and to evaluate whether music therapy improves delirium symptoms and outcomes. For this groundbreaking work, Dr. Smith is collaborating with co-investigator Dr. Chalene Ong to track changes in heart rate and pupil size to objectively measure patients’ responses to the music sessions.