Dementia: Personalised music playlists can aid memory and emotional well-being

Specialist training is being given at BCG, as the care provider invites the gift of music into its care homes and explores its impact on the fragile psychology of those with memory loss.

Welcoming members of charity Playlist for Life, 14 members of staff are undergoing skilled training that they will then be well placed to pass on to residents. The charity’s initiative supports care workers working with adults diagnosed with dementia to compile personal playlists, embracing the melodies of their past as a form of individualised therapy.

Members of Playlist for Life were inspired by research that shows how music can have an effect on autobiographical memory, helping to familiarise residents with their surroundings and soothing their emotional state.

Access to personalised music can also aid memory call and verbal communication, while improving the daily relationship between those with memory loss and their care workers, as well as family and friends.

Chair of Playlist for Life, Sally Magnusson, comments: “Playlist for Life is delighted to be working with Balhousie Care. We are grateful for their interest in, their energy and enthusiasm for the work that Playlist for Life is doing to bring a better life to people with dementia through access to personally meaningful music.”

Inspired by the New York charity Music and Memory, Playlist for Life took off in Scotland initially and is increasingly connecting with more and more care homes across the UK.

The charity is also collaborating with the Glasgow Caledonian University on research funded by Alzheimer Scotland, aiming to help inform policy makers on the economic benefits of funding personal music on iPods for people with dementia.