Children at University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital can now leave hospital rooms to write, record and perform their own music in a recording studio.
Hospital leaders on Aug. 3 celebrated the grand opening of Sophie’s Place, roughly 1,250 square feet of dedicated music therapy space for patients and families on the third floor of Mott. The $1.5 million project was made possible through donations from the Forever Young Foundation and the Mott Golf Classic along with additional significant gifts from other donors.
The studio is named after Sophie Rose Barton, a young singer and songwriter who was a music volunteer for Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah. Sophie unexpectedly passed away at age 17 but her legacy lives on through the Forever Young Foundation, which supports special music therapy programs at children’s hospitals across the country.
Through Sophie’s Place, the hospital teams will be able to nearly triple music therapy services, allowing patients to learn a variety of instruments to enhance cognitive and motor development, bond with their caregivers by creating positive memories through music and explore upgraded music and technology access.
Among expanded music therapy services to be offered at Sophie’s Place:
• Opportunities for patients to record their music and share it with other patients and families.
• “Behind the scenes” recording studio experiences designed to give patients an inside look at music production and the use of recording equipment.
• Individual and group music therapy gatherings in addition to bedside sessions.
• Specialized programming designed for parents, caregivers and siblings, to promote positive coping, normalization of environment and connecting with others on similar journeys.
• Programming designed to support families in grief and loss.
• Space for celebrity and patient performances, with capabilities for livestreaming performances through the hospital’s closed-circuit TV network for patients unable to leave their rooms.
• Music-based virtual program “Name that Tune” promoting connection, engagement and socialization from patients who either call down to the studio or scan a QR code to participate.
• Educational and music-themed weekly program story time conducted in partnership with Mott education specialists and child life assistants and that encourage academic engagement and development.
• Song of the day featuring songs selected by patients, families and staff that are celebrated through music therapists discussing the impact and importance of the selected song, teaching portions of the song to viewers and using music to enhance hospital connection and community.
Learn more at mottchildren.org
Source: mottchildren.org/news/archive/202208/mott-opens-state-art-music-studio-expand-music-therapy.
