Rachel Anderson plucks individual notes on her guitar while humming softly, keeping a watchful eye on the heartrate monitor next to her. The wires and leads are attached to a premature baby resting in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at UPMC Children鈥檚 Hospital of Pittsburgh where she rotates as a music therapy student.
The baby鈥檚 heartrate is high, and in collaboration with the NICU medical team, Rachel
uses the strategies she learned at the Mary Pappert School of Music to help bring
it to a safer level.
As Rachel slows her tempo on the guitar, the baby鈥檚 heartrate decreases 鈥� matching
her pace.
鈥淚 just feel so blessed to be doing this,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 important for infants in
the NICU to create an environment of relaxation.鈥�
In addition to medical benefits, music therapy can provide spiritual and emotional
support and social opportunities. Rachel enjoys catering each bedside experience to
the child鈥檚 individual needs to foster connections.
鈥淲e might write our own lyrics to a song about their hospital visit or diagnosis.
We can record the heartbeat of a child and incorporate it into a song for parents
if the child is really sick and they pass,鈥� says Rachel. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about the music therapist
interacting with patients and families, forming a rapport and using music as that
medium.鈥�
Despite originally planning to work in nursing homes, Rachel鈥檚 time at UPMC Children鈥檚
solidified her decision to pursue a career in a hospital setting because it provides
so many opportunities to support patients and their families.
鈥淚 saw a toddler consistently over the semester who didn鈥檛 have a life outside the
hospital,鈥� says Rachel. 鈥淭o provide eye contact and bright, colorful instruments that
sounded really fun made the hospital environment a little better. Knowing that I can
enhance quality of life means everything.鈥�
Rachel knew she wanted to help others and make an impact on the world from a young
age. Though she鈥檚 from Frederick, Maryland, she also knew she wanted to pursue these
aspirations in Pittsburgh after visiting Duquesne in middle school with her aunt,
a School of Nursing alumna.
鈥淓ven back then I said I was going 香蕉视频,鈥� says Rachel. 鈥淲hen I decided on music
therapy, I found that Duquesne was one of the few schools that offered it. I fell
in love with the program.鈥�
Rachel enjoys spreading awareness about her intended profession and the impact it
can have on others. 鈥淎 large part of music therapy is advocating for what we do as
an accredited profession,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e trained clinicians in addition to musicians.鈥�
Rachel鈥檚 primary instrument is the clarinet, but through the music therapy program
she鈥檚 worked on her singing voice and learned to play piano and guitar. With these
skills under her belt, she鈥檚 decided to pursue even bigger goals. She plans to learn
the ukulele and add additional songs to her repertoire in preparation for her next
role in a psychiatric hospital.
After graduation, Rachel hopes to become a music therapist at a general hospital so
she can help patients of all ages with diverse needs. Her time at Duquesne and the
convenient campus location have given her the professional confidence and experience
needed to get a running start on this meaningful career.
Rachel is grateful that Duquesne鈥檚 proximity to numerous hospitals and clinical sites
has provided so many hands-on learning opportunities, and she looks forward to connecting
with other students in new, meaningful ways as the 香蕉视频 College of
Osteopathic Medicine welcomes its first class.
鈥淚 prioritize a holistic health approach in my own practice and consider physical,
emotional and social wellbeing. It鈥檚 really exciting that Duquesne is expanding and
working to train new professionals in these resources,鈥� she says. 鈥淥pportunities are
here when I want to take them. Duquesne and Pittsburgh are flourishing.鈥�
News Information
New Medical School, Fresh Perspectives
Students from across campus will connect in meaningful, productive ways.
Rose Trimpey-Warhaftig
There's a huge need for primary care physicians who speak Spanish. I want to use these skills in my daily work to help eliminate barriers.
Jacob Dimenbort
There will be a lot of opportunities for interprofessional work, particularly in the state-of-the-art simulation suites. This is where students start to understand the roles and responsibilities of their colleagues in different simulations such as the emergency room, birthing suite and more.
Henry DiPaolo
The opening of Duquesne's College of Osteopathic Medicine is a great opportunity for collaboration. Pharmacy students can hear different patient cases and collaborate with a team of medical students, nursing students and pharmacy students鈥搄ust like in the hospital setting.
Kyla Covato
With the medical students we can look at issues they might have and help them discover what we can do about them. I'm excited to collaborate and solve more health issues.
Iv谩n Del Toro Hern谩ndez
Sometimes [doctors] say they have patients who would benefit from occupational therapy, and it helps to start that dialogue from the beginning in school鈥搉ot just during clinical field work.
Cassidy Camp
I feel like the school and faculty will guide medical students and get them on the same positive path faculty have sent me on in the nursing field.
Kirstin Franklin
The new college will allow school psychology students to interact with medical students and learn how those teams work, while medical students get to learn how school systems work. It's important to have these multidisciplinary teams working together so their patients鈥搊ur students鈥揷an benefit.
Amelia Trello
Duquesne students in the health profession programs are already contributing to the wellbeing of our communities. Now we are putting forth more professionals in the health sphere, and that's a great thing.
Fayla Junior
Since being here at Duquesne, one of the things that people tell others about Pittsburgh is that it's one of the places where health care thrives.