Meeting with Polyfon about music therapy

Today, the resource person for leisure and culture in Løvemammaene, Camilla Berg Rindahl, met with Polyfon. Kristianne Ervik (experience consultant) and Brynjulf Stige (manager) participated from Polyfon.

Polyfon was established after the Norwegian Directorate of Health began recommending music therapy in national professional guidelines (from 2013). Thus, they are a fairly new organisation, as are the Løvemammaen, and tread the path of music therapy into a health perspective.

They do not have government funding, and are financed by the members, who are healthcare organisations, municipalities, research environments etc. One of the areas they have worked on the most is mental health and substance abuse problems.

Polyfon was very interested in the Løvemammaenes' experiences with music therapy in hospital, and learned a lot just from hearing Camilla tell a little about her own meetings with the music therapists at OUS. They could tell that the music therapists at OUS and other university hospitals are very active in developing the field.

The offer of music therapy in the municipalities varies greatly, but generally there is very little. Camilla was clear that we at Løvemammaene want relevant cultural offerings for our children where they live, and if so all the way into the home. We must think in a 10-year perspective when it comes to ensuring that all municipalities have music therapists. Thus, we have a path we can walk together. At the same time, Polyfon pointed out that it is possible to build up good example municipalities where hospitals and municipalities are more closely connected, and wants to look into this in more detail, which the Løvemammaenee agree with. Camilla shared her experiences with individual municipalities in Eastern Norway that have made it happen . Among other things, the cultural school in Kongsberg has employed three music therapists who are used with great success.

There was broad agreement at the meeting that there are several overlapping interests at Polyfon and Løvemammaene.

After the meeting, the Løvemammaene have decided to go ahead with the collaboration and want a collaboration agreement with Polyfon with resource person Camilla Berg Rindahl as our representative, at the same time we are putting forward a candidate for Polyfon's experience panel. We will also look at the possibilities of collaborating on organizing a conference with music therapy in hospitals as a theme.

Løvemammaene look forward to further good cooperation with Polyfon!