Infant-Directed Singing in Neonatal and Paediatric Intensive Care

Abstract

Serious and life-threatening illnesses in the infant population present complex theoretical and practical challenges for both the family unit and hospital staff. These challenges operate at a minimum of three levels, namely the infant's internal system, the parent–infant relationship and the acute medical context. This article describes infant-directed singing as an intervention in restoring an attachment bond disrupted by serious illness. In particular, the following will be considered: the need for family focused interventions within the acute medical setting, the usefulness of attachment theory in the acute care context; a technical description of infant-directed singing and a cybernetic conceptualisation of the relevant staff–mother–infant interactions.