Musician-Clinician Uses Talents to Heal

The baby’s heartrate is high, and in collaboration with the NICU medical team, Rachel uses the strategies she learned at the Mary Pappert School of Music to help bring it to a safer level.
 
As Rachel slows her tempo on the guitar, the baby’s heartrate decreases – matching her pace.
 
“I just feel so blessed to be doing this,” she says. “It’s important for infants in the NICU to create an environment of relaxation.” 
 
In addition to medical benefits, music therapy can provide spiritual and emotional support and social opportunities. Rachel enjoys catering each bedside experience to the child’s individual needs to foster connections.
 
“We might write our own lyrics to a song about their hospital visit or diagnosis. We can record the heartbeat of a child and incorporate it into a song for parents if the child is really sick and they pass,” says Rachel. “It’s about the music therapist interacting with patients and families, forming a rapport and using music as that medium.”
 
Despite originally planning to work in nursing homes, Rachel’s time at UPMC Children’s solidified her decision to pursue a career in a hospital setting because it provides so many opportunities to support patients and their families.
 
“I saw a toddler consistently over the semester who didn’t have a life outside the hospital,” says Rachel. “To provide eye contact and bright, colorful instruments that sounded really fun made the hospital environment a little better. Knowing that I can enhance quality of life means everything.”
 
Rachel knew she wanted to help others and make an impact on the world from a young age. Though she’s from Frederick, Maryland, she also knew she wanted to pursue these aspirations in Pittsburgh after visiting Duquesne in middle school with her aunt, a School of Nursing alumna.
 
“Even back then I said I was going to Duquesne,” says Rachel. “When I decided on music therapy, I found that Duquesne was one of the few schools that offered it. I fell in love with the program.”
 
Rachel enjoys spreading awareness about her intended profession and the impact it can have on others. “A large part of music therapy is advocating for what we do as an accredited profession,” she says. “We’re trained clinicians in addition to musicians.”
 
Rachel’s primary instrument is the clarinet, but through the music therapy program she’s worked on her singing voice and learned to play piano and guitar. With these skills under her belt, she’s decided to pursue even bigger goals. She plans to learn the ukulele and add additional songs to her repertoire in preparation for her next role in a psychiatric hospital.
 
After graduation, Rachel hopes to become a music therapist at a general hospital so she can help patients of all ages with diverse needs. Her time at Duquesne and the convenient campus location have given her the professional confidence and experience needed to get a running start on this meaningful career.
 
Rachel is grateful that Duquesne’s proximity to numerous hospitals and clinical sites has provided so many hands-on learning opportunities, and she looks forward to connecting with other students in new, meaningful ways as the Duquesne University College of Osteopathic Medicine welcomes its first class.
 
“I prioritize a holistic health approach in my own practice and consider physical, emotional and social wellbeing. It’s really exciting that Duquesne is expanding and working to train new professionals in these resources,” she says. “Opportunities are here when I want to take them. Duquesne and Pittsburgh are flourishing.”