Hello everyone! I hope you all have had a wonderful week and are doing well.
This past week has looked quite different for me. I finished out my second week of quarantine due to family members becoming ill. As a result, I have had to work from home for the past two weeks. This has led to many challenges and a few realizations.
Going through internship during a global pandemic has certainly been different. When I began looking and applying to internship sites, I had no idea what my path would look like. I was open for new experiences and challenges. However, I was most certainly not prepared for an experience like this one.
There have been so many changes to the music therapy field, as well as many other professions. New guidelines and safety procedures have been put in place, as well as new ways of providing services. I would like to share with you three of the big changes that I was unprepared for when I first started this journey, but have become part of my weekly routine.
1. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
For our individual clients here at MTC, there are some cases where physical contact is unavoidable. As a result, we wear PPE during our individual sessions. This includes medical gloves, a communicator mask, and a face shield. This was very uncomfortable at first, and still is, but I have slowly become accustomed to it. The most challenging parts about wearing PPE is playing the guitar with gloves and making sure you sing and speak clearly through everything.
2. Tele-Health
When this pandemic became apparent back in March of 2020, all in-person services were stopped. After a bit, people began to learn how to provide virtual services through platforms such as Zoom. As a result, I have learned how to provide virtual sessions and record sessions and music therapy materials for students I have been unable to see. I am so grateful for the opportunity to learn how to continue providing services for those we are unable to see in-person.
3. Sanitation
During my undergrad, I was taught to always clean the instruments and materials after using them in a session before returning them. This is a skill that I have certainly used a LOT during my internship. With COVID, everything must be sanitized well before additional use. This includes the piano, the guitar, tables and chairs, door handles, and anything else the client may have touched. This has been a big change in my sanitation routine but I have grown accustomed to it and am not sure I’ll ever return to only cleaning the small instruments like before.
Overall, my internship looks very different from what I ever expected it to be. There have been so many challenges and opportunities that have come with working in a pandemic. While there are many opportunities I have missed out on due to COVID, I have chosen to focus on the opportunities it as given me instead. Being an intern during a global pandemic is certainly not easy, but I appreciate everything I have learned so far!
Thanks for reading! I hope you all have a wonderful week and stay healthy!
Cicely McCain
