sexual abuse; not because it doesn’ t happen( it does, and far more frequently than you probably imagine), but because people are unlikely to do those things when there’ s a witness around. What you will witness is verbal and emotional abuse. At the least, this may take the form of failing to respect clients— talking about them as if they aren’ t there or can’ t understand, for example. At worst, it will include shouting; speaking in nasty, angry tones; barking orders; name-calling; openly mocking, imitating, and ridiculing clients; even intentionally provoking them until they react and then scolding them for reacting.
And frequently that verbal and emotional abuse will be directed at you! In part, it’ s because that is simply what happens in a setting where abuse is the norm; no one is exempt. But there are also reasons why your co-workers may be inclined to target the music therapist in particular. As stated above, people who don’ t know any better believe that being a music therapist is an easy job. Morale is generally poor in institutions, especially among the‘ front line’ workers( i. e., aides, direct care workers). They feel, quite rightly, that their own job is hard; unfortunately, for many of them that translates into resentment toward people they believe have it‘ easy.’
This resentment may be deepened by the fact that, in most cases, the music therapist works from and / or in a central location, away from where the clients and the aides spend most of their time. You go into each unit / classroom / building for only a brief time. It’ s not unusual for your co-workers to perceive this arrangement as unfair and another manifestation of how much‘ easier’ your job is than theirs. It’ s not unusual for staff to complain bitterly that they are“ stuck with the clients all day!”( Yes, they say that in front of the clients.)
Another effect of this kind of arrangement is that the staff view the music therapist as an‘ outsider’ whose visits disrupt the usual routine.( More resentment!) They may also believe that since you are on their‘ turf,’ it is up to them to tell you what to do, including how you should conduct your sessions.( More on this later!)
Another systemic issue that may make music therapists more likely targets for abuse than others is our( real or perceived) vulnerability. We do not enjoy the strength of a large department; most music therapists are the only one in their workplace. We are rarely supervisors or have a music therapist as our supervisor; it’ s entirely possible our co-workers have literally never seen a music therapist in a position of authority. Most of us are women. Our profession is poorly understood and usually undervalued. Think about it: When a disgruntled worker feels the need to displace some anger, is he likely to do so onto his supervisor or the people he works next to every day or the professionals he perceives as respected and powerful( e. g., doctors)? No. It’ s simply human nature to be more inclined to attack easier, weaker targets.(“ Oh, look— the music therapist is here!”)
Not all of the negativity will come in overtly hostile ways. But even the friendliest, most professional co-workers will indicate how little they respect your work. One co-worker, whenever he caught sight of the musical instruments, would say,“ You have the best toys!” This same person was partially responsible for the budget; one day he informed me that the facility would no longer be paying to have the piano tuned. Naturally, I asked what other equipment would be allowed to deteriorate. Would our old copier, which broke down every week or two, no longer be serviced? Would the nurses be holding a bake sale to raise money for new blood pressure cuffs? Of course not— the budget would cover those legitimate expenses because those items were seen as essential equipment needed to do our work. But clearly he saw music therapy and its“ toys” as just frivolous extras.
If this had been the only time this sort of thing had happened-- even if it had happened only occasionally-- it could be dismissed as trivial. But the reality I lived with for over 20 years was that, virtually daily, my co-workers communicated, either subtly or overtly, that they thought what I did was of little or no value. If I had to sum up their general attitude, I’ d say most considered music therapy a benign diversion for the clients if they had nothing better to do. Staff thought nothing of interrupting sessions or of causing clients to miss their music therapy sessions completely. Some examples of the kinds of things staff considered more important than music therapy? Smoking. Watching TV. Helping staff move boxes. Finishing the game of cards or ping pong they were currently playing with that staff person.
The use of space— which is usually at a premium in institutions— can also be an indicator of how( little) music therapy is valued. Music therapists often struggle to get adequate space in which to work. One of my early jobs involved the entire unit moving several times within the facility; each time the creative arts therapists were given the smallest, ugliest office available. When we brought in our own belongings( posters, plants, etc.) to make our office more attractive, our co-workers resentfully protested that we were“ given the nicest office.” Our unit director responded by threatening to take the office from us completely, suggesting that the group room could double as our office( a not unusual arrangement). In fact, we were fortunate to actually have a group room, something I would learn to appreciate even more when I worked at facilities where that was not the case. My final music therapy job was at a large facility where most of my sessions were held in the residences. In most cases, the staff expected me to hold sessions in the large, open, extremely noisy day area, which I considered completely inappropriate and untenable. It was an on-going battle to get‘ permission’ to use one of the other rooms; this became another basis for resentment and complaints from other staff. On more than one occasion I showed up for a session only to be informed that from now on the room I had been using would be unavailable at that time;
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