St Mary MacKillop College music project for Baptistcare William Carey Court’s residents
St Mary MacKillop College students thrilled residents at Baptistcare William Carey Court in Busselton with their music project.
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04 July 2021
News
| Aged Care Homes
As part of their Music for Dementia Project, students at St Mary MacKillop College raised funds to purchase headsets and also created personalised playlists for residents at Baptistcare William Carey Court Residential Care in Busselton.
From rock ‘n’ roll to calming nature music, a group of high school students from St Mary MacKillop College have made personalised playlists for residents of Baptistcare William Carey Court Residential Care in Busselton.
The Year 11 and Year 12 St Mary MacKillop College students raised funds to purchase headsets as part of their Music for Dementia Project.
Each headset holds an SD card, which the students loaded with songs and music personal to each resident, including significant tunes from their past.
One resident asked for music to relax to, so her playlist featured calm, peaceful nature music, while Baptistcare’s resident Slim Dusty fan requested a playlist featuring only his favourite country music singer.
A group of 10 musically-minded students were helped by the Rotary Club of Busselton-Geographe Bay who sourced the headsets and booked the fundraising sausage sizzles the students ran at Bunnings.
Tamara Clark, Teacher and Bibliotherapist at St Mary MacKillop College, said the students welcomed the opportunity to work with a community-minded group such as Rotary on a project that had a positive local outcome.
“It was an excellent initiative as it is scientifically proven that music relevant to the individual has positive effects on dementia patients,” she said.
Research suggests that music brings a range of benefits for people with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, including prompting memories, and helping to reduce anxiety and depression.
Roslyn McDonald, the Lifestyle Coordinator at Baptistcare William Carey Court, curated the individual playlists using suggestions from the residents, along with music their families said had been part of their loved one’s history.
“We’ve seen residents really coming to life and enjoying the music. And they have moved to the music too, whether it’s been a tap of the fingers or the feet,” she said.
Mrs McDonald said Baptistcare was grateful to the students and also to Rotary for making the music project possible.
Baptistcare William Carey Court has a busy music therapy program that also includes performances by the Busselton Brass Band and Ukulele Band.
St Mary MacKillop College has previously partnered with Baptistcare William Carey Court, staging musical performances and organising companion visits by student volunteers. The college’s therapy dog also pops in each week to visit residents.
Follow this link for more information about Residential Care or contact us on 1300 275 227.