Music Therapy Clinician: Supporting reflective clinical practice Volume 1 | Page 8

NJ FOCUS
Reflections on my experiences as
NJAMT President
Melissa Santiago, MS, MT-BC, CCLS
As an undergraduate and graduate music
therapy student I was heavily involved in the music
therapy community outside of school. I served on
regional and national student music therapy
organizations and co-coordinated a conference for
students and new professionals. I believed that if I got
involved I would learn more about the field and be as
prepared as possible for becoming a professional.
What I didn’t realize is, by participating in these
organizations, I would meet people across the country
and have the opportunity to connect with other music
therapists and music therapy students. It was my first
venture into networking.
When I entered the professional world as a
board certified music therapist, I cut back on
volunteering for [various] organizations and dedicated
my energy toward growing clinically. I had amazing
coworkers that I learned from and grew with, but I
missed having other music therapists with whom to
talk. I have turned to those coworkers when a patient
I’ve worked with closely dies, or to share my joy after I
have helped a child fall asleep instead of cry during a
medical procedure. However, I found I didn’t have
anyone to talk to about how to change my approach
with a dying patient who was resistant to song writing,
or how to connect musically with a patient who prefers
rap music. I was lacking people to turn to when I
needed to bounce around song ideas, or figure out
how to modify a clinical technique. I was able to
benefit from peer supervision at work, but it wasn’t
directly focused on music therapy. In addition to the
clinical side, I missed the experience of knowing
people when I attended a conference or workshop.
Finally, after being away for several years, I connected
with the New Jersey Association for Music Therapy
(NJAMT) and got involved with music therapy
organizations again.
As a student I learned how important
networking was to develop my clinical identity. I
attended student executive board meetings at national
6|P age

conferences, where a group of people who didn’t know
each other had to come together to achieve a common
goal. We had to meet one another, establish a
rapport, and move forward to achieve our goals in a
short amount of time. I encounter similar situations in
my clinical work with pediatric patients. Oftentimes, I
meet patients for the first time the moment I step into
their room. I walk into the session, identify what I
believe is the need, and work with the medical staff,
the patient, and his or her family to develop rapport
and reach a goal. I believe my ability to be flexible and
adapt to situations that arise in my work are strengths
I possess, and they are an important part of my identity
as a music therapist. Looking back, I see how those
early roles on student boards helped me develop
those skills when working with new people. As I
networked, I learned how to connect and work towards
a common goal.
I have now fulfilled the role of NJAMT President and
have worked with an incredible group of music
therapists. They have volunteered their time to help
spread awareness of music therapy, to advocate for
our field, and to support music therapists across the
state. They have different areas of expertise,
different passions, and each one uses their own
strengths to help NJAMT.
The relationships I have built through NJAMT have
supported me in my advocacy efforts as well as in my
clinical work. I met a music therapist through NJAMT,
and, as we began to develop a relationship, she invited
me to join her in a presentation. This allowed me to
increase public awareness about my work in
pediatrics. I was appreciative of the invitation and
grateful that NJAMT connected us. Seeing her
approach various facilities and inquire about
presenting helped me learn more about reaching out
to promote myself.
I’ve also had the opportunity to share the
difficulties we sometimes face with someone who can
relate. As an example, I reached out to a music
therapy colleague for support when I was feeling stuck
with a client. My client was resisting music therapy,
acting out physically, and I wasn’t sure where to go
next. We had been making progress toward the set
goals, but suddenly we were moving backwards. I
tried different approaches, I incorporated the family