Child Advocacy Centers in the United States and Music Therapy: Relationships in the Making
Date
2018
Authors
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Publisher
Voices: A World Forum for Music Therapy
Abstract
In the United States, children who suffer trauma or abuse receive services through
Children’s Advocacy Centers (CACs). Over 800 CACs provided treatment and services
to nearly 325,000 children in 2016 (National Children’s Alliance, 2016b). CACs coordinate
the work of multidisciplinary teams (MDT) including law enforcement, mental
health, medical, and social service personnel to help children and families heal. CACs
are autonomous groups made up of affiliations with many local agencies. This article
provides a description of the National Children’s Alliance (NCA) standards for implementing
treatment, including the state of music therapy implementation in CACs. The
literature has shown that music therapy can be helpful to address needs of children
and families who have experienced trauma, suggesting that this may offer a helpful
treatment modality in CACs. However, music therapy is rarely available in CACs.
This may be, in part, a result of the lack of randomized controlled trials, a key determining
factor for inclusion in the annotated bibliography that accompanies the
NCA Standards (National Children’s Alliance, 2013). Music therapy practice has addressed
the clinical needs of children and teens who have been abused. This work is
often presented in clinical reflections, not randomized controlled trials. Music therapy
is currently not included in the treatment modalities utilized by CACs because
of a perceived lack of evidence base. This article attempts to synthesize the information
available to provide CACs with the current state of research in music therapy
with children who have been abused. This article also provides music therapists with
a depth of information about the structure and function of CACs, including a synthesis
of the NCA Standards of Practice. The article presents a description for the implementation
of music therapy services in a CAC in New Jersey and includes recommendations
for music therapists who wish to seek out opportunities for clinical practice
at CACs.
Description
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Keywords
Music therapy, children's advocacy centers, child abuse
Citation
Blank, C. A. (2018, October). Child Advocacy Centers in the United States and Music Therapy. In Voices: A World Forum for Music Therapy (Vol. 18, No. 4).