Reflections on telehealth music therapy for persons with dementia in response to covid-19

Social distancing was a globally enforced safety precaution implemented in the face of the COVID 19 pandemic that led to isolation, especially among persons with dementia and their caregivers. This critical situation intensified the need to support this already vulnerable population. Many music therapists stepped up to this challenge by providing telehealth music therapy. However, telehealth raised new questions and presented ethical dilemmas. While telehealth is not new, it has not been widely practiced prior to the pandemic. As music therapists who have worked for many years with persons with dementia and their caregivers, we pause to reflect on the new path we took and share what we learned and can embrace from this modality of service provision.