Reporting quality of music intervention research in healthcare: A systematic review

INTRODUCTION: Concomitant with the growth of music intervention research, are concerns about inadequate intervention reporting and inconsistent terminology, which limits validity, replicability, and clinical application of findings. OBJECTIVE: Examine reporting quality of music intervention research, in chronic and acute medical settings, using the Checklist for Reporting Music-based Interventions. In addition, describe patient populations and primary outcomes, intervention content and corresponding interventionist qualifications, and terminology. METHODS: Searching MEDLINE, PubMed, CINAHL, HealthSTAR, and PsycINFO we identified articles meeting inclusion/exclusion criteria for a five-year period (2010-2015) and extracted relevant data. Coded material included reporting quality across seven areas (theory, content, delivery schedule, interventionist qualifications, treatment fidelity, setting, unit of delivery), author/journal information, patient population/outcomes, and terminology. RESULTS: Of 860 articles, 187 met review criteria (128 experimental; 59 quasi-experimental), with 121 publishing journals, and authors from 31 countries. Overall reporting quality was poor with <50% providing information for four of the seven checklist components (theory, interventionist qualifications, treatment fidelity, setting). Intervention content reporting was also poor with <50% providing information about the music used, decibel levels/volume controls, or materials. Credentialed music therapists and registered nurses delivered most interventions, with clear differences in content and delivery. Terminology was varied and inconsistent. CONCLUSIONS: Problems with reporting quality impedes meaningful interpretation and cross-study comparisons. Inconsistent and misapplied terminology also create barriers to interprofessional communication and translation of findings to patient care. Improved reporting quality and creation of shared language will advance scientific rigor and clinical relevance of music intervention research

They did what? A Systematic Review of Music Intervention Reporting in Healthcare Research

poster abstractAbstract Background/Purpose: Both public interest in and publication of music intervention studies are increasing, with more than 1,000 articles published in healthcare journals over the last twenty years. Concomitant with this growth are concerns about inadequate intervention descriptions and inconsistent terminology in published research which limits cross-study comparisons, interdisciplinary communication, and integration of findings into practice. Purposes of this systematic review were to summarize and describe music intervention reporting in published research for patients with chronic or acute medical conditions including intervention content, outcomes of interest, interventionist qualifications, and terminology used to label and describe interventions. Theoretical/Conceptual Framework: Our review is based on published Reporting Guidelines for Musicbased Interventions which specifies 7 areas of reporting: theory, content, delivery schedule, interventionist, treatment fidelity, setting, and unit of delivery. Method: We identified experimental music intervention studies for patients with chronic/acute medical conditions, published 2010 - 2014, using MEDLINE, PubMed, CINAHL, and PsycINFO databases. Our initial search identified 620 articles, with 133 retained based on specific inclusion/exclusion criteria. Five nurse/music therapy student dyads reviewed full articles and abstracted data for analysis. Faculty mentors conducted interrater reliability checks and resolved data extraction discrepancies through discussion/consensus. This interdisciplinary approach provided a rich context for exploring how intervention descriptions/terminology may be interpreted and understood differently based on background and discipline-specific training. Results: Data are summarized based on Reporting Guidelines for Music-based interventions. Areas poorly reported: 1) intervention theory (i.e., mechanisms of action), 2) references for sound recordings/musical arrangements, 3) decibel level/sound controls, 4) interventionist qualifications and training. Two hundred music terms were cited (84 terms defined; 116 terms not defined), and often misapplied. Conclusions: Improved reporting will allow better cross-study comparisons, replication, and translation to practice. Additionally, standardization of music intervention terminology will improve interdisciplinary communication, delineation of music interventions across disciplines, and implementation

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure