In conjunction with World’s Alzheimer’s Month this September, Men’s Health Magazine has featured SanCare Asia in a heartfelt video on the ‘Strike A Note’ program which has been deployed at various nursing homes, community hospitals, and homes islandwide. The program employs music as a form of therapy for people suffering from dementia.
In the video, founder of SanCare Asia Mr Johnson Soh describes how using music as therapy can help the aged in Singapore who are suffering from this terrible degeneration of the mind.
“I started this journey because of my father who showed signs of early Alzheimer’s”, say Mr Soh. After some research, he found that reminiscence can be a strong force and music is a great way to bring out that emotion. So he started trying out music therapy with his father and found that it made a significant difference in how his father responded to care.
So taking that same process, SanCare curates a music playlist for each client based on their history and conversations with their family. Through that individualised playlist, Mr Soh hopes to be able to connect with each client. “Everybody has a soundtrack to their lives. I’m trying to look for that song that has the most impact on each patient”, he adds.
In the video, a staff nurse at St Andrew’s Nursing Home describes the power that music has on the residents there. People suffering from dementia can often be aggressive, withdrawn, and unresponsive. Many are difficult to handle and some even refuse to eat meals and take their medication. But all of the residents who have been getting music therapy have show significant improvements after even just a month. They’re not distant with their caregivers and they even ask for seconds at mealtimes.
Johnson Soh and SanCare Asia are taking a melodic approach to patients with dementia and it’s paying off.
Watch the video here:
