The Wrap by Michigan Medicine Headlines · Michigan Medicine Podcast Network

The Wrap - Bedside Music Program

·32 min·2 clips

The team recorded a 17-track chapel album and had almost 2,000 plays already.

1. The Wrap by Michigan Medicine Headlines centers on the bedside music program at Michigan Medicine. 2. Hosts Dan Ellman and Lilia Zimek interview Sam Vandiver, the bedside music coordinator, and Desmond Breton, a bedside musician who plays bass violin. 3. The episode asks what bedside music is for and how live instruments change the hospital experience. 4. Sam says he started at Michigan Medicine in 2018 as a musician and became coordinator in 2020 during COVID. 5. Desmond says he joined in 2023 after a graduate program at the University of Michigan. 6. Sam describes the team as eight musicians: three harpists, three guitarists, a pianist, and Desmond on bass violin. 7. The program builds a daily list from staff referrals and patients who have previously benefited. 8. Sam says the list can hold 30 to 60 patients, and the team visits University Hospital, the cardiovascular center, and adult inpatients in Mott. 9. Desmond explains that he often works in hallways, lobbies, and other open spaces because the bass violin is large and awkward to carry into rooms. 10. Sam says each musician may see five to 15 patients in a day, depending on the schedule. 11. Sam says the bedside role is a service, not a performance, because staff interruptions and privacy needs can change the session at any moment. 12. He gives the example of stopping a song outside an ICU room when a staff member needs to enter. 13. He also says the team stops immediately if a patient needs privacy and no longer wants music. 14. Desmond says patients sometimes want a duet or a longer conversation instead of a formal set. 15. Sam says the work can include staff support, especially after COVID when burnout was high. 16. He says doctors sometimes ask him to stay during difficult conversations because the music can act as a buffer. 17. The musicians also discuss a chapel album that began with a song based on a patient’s poem. 18. Sam says the project moved into Duderstadt Studios for a week and became a 17-track CD with 21 online tracks. 19. The tone is practical and collaborative, with repeated examples from rooms, hallways, elevators, and the chapel. 20. Listeners who like hospital care, live acoustic music, and service roles will likely engage; listeners wanting only quick news may skip it.

As heard by us

A bedside music program brings small, human moments into Michigan Medicine, even with limited funding.

The Wrap follows Michigan Medicine's bedside music program with a clear, practical eye. Sam Vandiver and Desmond Breton lay out their roles and daily routines, and the episode stays strongest when it shows the work in motion: a musician at a doorway, a quiet hallway, a song…

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You want a bedside music story that stays practical, humane, and never slips into fuss.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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