Brief Report on Erasmus + funding for a link between UCC Ghana and UL Music Therapy programme | University of Limerick

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The University of Limerick has a well-established link with the University of Cape Coast (UCC) and the Padre Pio Rehabilitation Centre in Ghana. An interdisciplinary team of academics from nursing, medical, business, music and dance backgrounds at UL have been working for several years with the University and its health partners in Ghana. Skill sharing and mutual learning are the bedrocks of this partnership. The music therapy department became involved in 2019 when Prof Hilary Moss joined a UL working group. Erasmus + funding was made available for developments between the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance and UCC. However, Hilary quickly noted that the children at the Padre Pio Rehab Centre might benefit from music therapy.

Covid 19 intervened, preventing planned visits and skill in 2020 and 2021. Undeterred by these setbacks, Hilary collaborated with Mark Mantey (Director of the Padre Pio Centre and UL alumni) and Phd student Lisa Kelly, to produce a training film for staff at the Padre Pio centre. They already used music with their clients in a sophisticated way, and the film gave them a brief insight into the work of music therapists and some practical everyday skills to engage and resource children and adults with physical and intellectual disabilities at the centre. At the same time, Prof Moss and Ms Kelly gave a virtual lecture to over fifty academics and teaching staff UCC, under the leadership of Dr Eric Otchere. All during the COVID 19 pandemic! Active attempts were also made to attract a Ghanaian student to study music therapy at UL but to date funding issues applicants have prevented them taking up this opportunity.

In July 2022 it was finally possible to send two of our best music therapy academic staff (also experienced professional music therapists) to Accra in Ghana. Bill Ahessy and Lisa Kelly ran workshops with clients at the Rehabilitation centre, built relationships with university and rehabilitation staff and began to assess how research and practice at UL might best contribute and support clients who cannot currently access music therapy in Ghana. This included staff workshops, lectures, group music therapy sessions and purchasing musical instruments while they were in Ghana for the children at the centre.

There is currently no professional music therapy training in Ghana. The MA Music Therapy (a blended MA programme) has a strong international reputation and is perfectly placed to support provision of professional education and training in Ghana. The benefits of music therapy for clients includes developing communication skills in children with developmental delay, significant rehabilitation potential for people with acquired brain injury and significant quality-of-life enhancement for older people living with dementia, to name a few of the areas where music therapy is evidenced to support health and well-being in vulnerable populations.

To date, outputs include:

Skill sharing and staff training at Padre Pio centre near Accra, in-person and online
Meetings with over 50 faculty members and students at UCC from music, medicine, nursing, and allied health departments.
Information sessions with local students at schools as well as expert representatives from Ghana who wish to establish music therapy services and education at university and related clinical facilities
Clinical assessment of group and individual music therapy needs, requirements and potential services at Padre Pio
Developed links with music department regarding Music therapy and Music and Health undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, shared learning, and development
Unparalleled learning and development opportunities for UL academics and students about Ghanian culture and healthcare

What we want to do next:

(1) Attract Ghanaian trainees to the UL MA programme, this will mean scholarships are needed to support students from the region

(2) Offer Irish students the opportunity to complete one of their clinical placements in Ghana. We aim to embed this opportunity in the UL MA Music Therapy programme

(3) Further develop skill sharing/training with University of Cape Coast and Padre Pio through funded staff and student exchanges (MTs from our department) of 1 month long, to visit during university teaching time to explore the university link and work with UCC students

(4) Explore the possibility of teaching an online music therapy module as part of UCC degree from UL or giving guest lecturers on ongoing basis

(5) Develop learning opportunities at UL from the rich Ghanaian music and dance culture in represented at UCC music department

The values that underpin this UL international community engaged research and practice project are (1) a commitment to collaborative development with all stakeholders; (b) two-way skill sharing and learning; (3) person-centred care.