Musical Care Taskforce

A colourful and inspiring new guide is now available to help people understand how to use and experience music at every phase of a person’s dementia journey.
The Musical Dementia Care Pathway explains visually why, how, who with, where, and when people might access music to help enhance quality of life through music. Based on the concept of the NHS Well Dementia Pathway, this engaging guide will be an invaluable resource for people to return to again and again to find and explore new ideas.

Produced by Music for Dementia in collaboration with people with lived experience, carers, family members and representatives from dementia and care organisations, the pathway is designed as a starting point for thinking about the many opportunities there are to engage with music. Examples shown include listening to playlists, learning an instrument, singing in a choir, music therapy and many others.

Centred around a musical stave depicting the pathway, the flowing design features friendly and quirky characters participating in a range of activities to show the breadth of choice available.

Interspersed with these are possible places where music can take place and the people who can share in the music to assist those with dementia in their enjoyment of it. There is even a laptop icon among the hand-drawn figures to reflect the current pandemic and the diversity of online activities available to people living with dementia from musicians and music therapists adapting their offers.