FMDH Now Offering Alternative Therapies

Frances Mahon Deaconess Hospital unveiled last week a new way to decrease preoperative anxiety, which in turn will decrease postoperative anxiety, pain and nausea, by introducing two alternative medical therapies. At no additional charge to the patient, these new therapies will allow a patient to have a more stress-free experience before, during and after surgery procedures.

Patients will have the choice between two options, therapeutic inhaled essential oil therapy (TIEO) or music therapy. TIEO, or aromatherapy, is the use of essential oils with proven properties to reduce anxiety and nausea. Patients are offered a gauze pad with the choice of lavender blend, which includes lavender, chamomile and sweet orange, or citrus blend, which includes bergamot, sweet orange and lavender. If music therapy is chosen, the patient will be provided special surgical headphones, which are wireless, and preloaded with the appropriate music shown in research to decrease anxiety before, during and after the procedure. Patients will also have the option to listen to their own music, but the music must be non-lyrical with a rate of 60 to 80 beats per minute.

Director of Surgical Services Brooke Martin started looking into alternatives for patients as a result of the opioid crisis and to improve patient experience overall while in the hospital. “The question I had always thought about is ‘What else can we do to improve their experience?’,” said Martin. She started researching to see what other departments and hospitals do and saw that there are tons of published and verifiable research in the medical community utilizing music and essential oils. The studies showed when utilizing either music therapy or aromatherapy there is decreased anxiety before and after surgery, decreased pain after surgery, decreased nausea and vomiting after surgery and a decreased need for narcotics and sedatives.

“I will admit, I was a huge skeptic on the validity of essential oils. But when I saw studies published in the American Journal of Cardiology and the American Journal of Gastrology, which are highly respectable journals in the medical field, my mind started to shift,” said Martin. “There was a study that I read where a patient required a decreased amount of medication after having a heart catheter placed, all because of the music therapy the patient participated in. It certainly opened my mind significantly to alternative methods for pain control.”

When choosing music therapy, a patient will listen to the music for a minimum of 15 minutes during the preoperative process. “Fifteen minutes will provide enough time for the brain to sync up with the rhythm,” said Martin. The patient will then be able to listen to the music during surgery allowing the subconscious to stay synced up with the beat. The music will continue to be played while the patient wakes up into consciousness, allowing the body and brain to stay synced with the music. “The patient will have a calmer experience listening to the music upon waking up from the anesthesia than hearing voices from nurses and/or doors opening or shutting,” said Martin.

When choosing TIEO, the patient will be able to choose one of two blends, lavender or citrus. The blend will be placed on a gauze pad, and patients will then be able to inhale the scents. “These blend of scents were chosen due to the biochemical properties these scents have. Also, research has shown these blends create the most calming effect,” said Martin. For anyone who has an allergy to lavender or citrus, she stated they are not tied to just being able to choose music therapy. “It is very rare to have a true sensitivity to pure scents. Oftentimes when someone says they are allergic to a scent, it’s actually other properties that have been added that is causing the allergy. The essential oils we provide are pure scents.”

Once both therapies get underway, Martin will track positive and negative effects from patients who utilized the therapies. The goal down the road is to offer other health services to decrease anxiety including guided images, and acupressure utilizing pressure points. “We are constantly thinking of how to make changes and implement new things,” said Martin. “People are realizing they are getting more and more educated about their health care. The consumer of health care is more into alternative medicines and there is a trend of that in the medical field. I’m glad FMDH is able to find things that work with that.”