Telehealth Music Therapy: Access, Connection, and Virtual Care

Article Overview

Telehealth music therapy has grown rapidly in recent years as clinicians, educators, and researchers have adapted music therapy to virtual care settings. In this 2026 scoping review, researchers mapped the existing literature on telehealth music therapy across clinical, educational, and community contexts. The review identified 53 eligible peer-reviewed studies published between 2009 and 2025, with most appearing after 2020.

The findings suggest that telehealth music therapy shows strong feasibility, accessibility, and acceptability across a wide range of populations, including children with developmental delays, adults with cancer, older adults with dementia or Parkinson’s disease, veterans, caregivers, and students. Reported benefits included reduced anxiety, improved mood, greater caregiver-client connection, enhanced engagement, and expanded access for rural, isolated, or homebound individuals. At the same time, the review notes that the evidence base is still dominated by small-scale qualitative and feasibility studies, with a lack of randomized controlled trials and ongoing challenges related to technology, infrastructure, and fit for certain clients or interventions.

Why This Matters

This article matters because it gives a broad, current picture of how telehealth music therapy, virtual music therapy, and online music therapy are being used in real-world practice. For readers searching for remote services, it supports the idea that music therapy can be delivered meaningfully through videoconferencing and hybrid models, especially when barriers like distance, health limitations, transportation, or scheduling make in-person care difficult.

It is also useful because it stays grounded in the current evidence. This is a scoping review, not a meta-analysis, so it is best understood as a map of the field rather than proof that telehealth is always equal to or better than in-person care. The review specifically notes that telehealth music therapy may not be the best fit in every situation and that factors like technology access, caregiver support, therapeutic relationship, and client safety still matter. That balance makes it a strong library article for your site because it combines strong SEO value with careful, credible framing.

Clements-Cortés, A., Pranjić, M., Hernandez-Ruiz, E., Kelly, L., Brotons, M., Selvarajah, I., Wandel, N., & Han, E. (2026). Telehealth music therapy research, training and practice: A scoping review. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 98, 102432. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2026.102432

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