Music in the cardiac rehabilitation journey: Perspectives on patient experiences of GIM therapy

Music is effective in addressing stress and anxiety in medical treatment, but the efficacy of music applications for women undergoing gynaecological procedures and fertility treatments is rarely explored. Such anxiety relates invasive procedures and intimate examinations with uncertain expectations, in turn affecting the outcomes of medical procedures. Music is proposed as an intervention to reduce such anxiety via both distraction and relaxation. The current ethics-approved funded collaborative research project investigated uses of music and music therapy by women attending a fertility specialist to reduce anxiety, especially anxiety before procedures. Forty-one women attending office, day surgery and hospital procedures completed the validated State Trait Anxiety Inventory before and after music listening (Music Star). Statistically significant results indicated efficacy, and further music therapy sessions were provided. This staged research program contributes new understandings of the complex needs of women undergoing fertility treatments and the positive uses of music in this context