Life-review activities applied in the music therapy-based end-of-life care programs: literature review

To explore the incidence, aims, contents, and protocol of the life-review activities applied in the music therapy-based end-of-life care programs. Electronic search of the literature related to application of music therapy in end-of-life care in PubMed, EBSCO, The Cochrane Library, Science Direct, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global, PsycARTICLES and Academic Search was carried out. Out of the totalling nearly 100 articles examining the application of music therapy in end-of-life care programs, the literature review includes information from 17 sources identified as the most relevant to carry out the objective. Research reveals that life-review is one of the most used music therapy activity in end-of-life care programs and is mostly utilized to decrease the psychological and existential distress of terminally ill patients, allowing them to gain a retrospective sense of acceptance and meaning of their lives. In terms of the contents, activities can be sectioned into four groups - such as musical biography, songwriting, musical improvisation, and musical journey. As from research, life-review activities are mostly applied in one-to-one sessions with music therapist, however – participation of patient’s caregivers, family, and sometimes - staff – is not uncommon. Life-review is one of the most used music therapy activities in end-of-life care programs, utilized in various forms to decrease the psychological and existential distress of terminally ill patients.