TME Tuesday: Updating the Database

It is time.

I have neglected my therapeutic music experience (TME) database for the last three interns, and it needs to be updated! So, today is the day that I start to get that process started.

If you are a new reader, then, keep reading the next paragraph. If you are familiar with what I do and how I organize my ideas, then you can skip the next paragraph and not miss much of anything at all!

I have been collecting ideas for my therapeutic music experience (TME - what I call the things I do with my client during sessions) since the second semester of my freshman year. I had an assignment to come up with 25 ideas of things I could possibly do in sessions with clients. I remember that assignment as being extremely difficult, but I did it, and my TME file was born! I put in all sorts of ideas and situations into my file, and I add the TMEs that my interns share with me during their time at the facility. It has been a long time since I have linked TMEs into my file, so I will be spending this time off chipping away on this task. The first step is to transfer the new TMEs onto the jumpdrive and then copy that drive onto my other drives for future reference...

I have an excel spreadsheet that I use as my database. This system has worked for me for years, and I am comfortable with this system, so I will probably use it forever. When I am entering my own TMEs, I usually update the database as soon as the document is finished, but I do not always get that finished with my interns' contributions. 

I have copied my current TMEs into my storage and will be transferring them onto my various cloud accounts as well. I am a bit scared of losing all of these ideas, so I make backups of my backups. I have lost things (like the digital copy of my thesis) before, so I have learned to make redundancy systems to help protect my data. I will open up my TME folder on the drive and then arrange it the way I want - new TMEs placed in a folder that allows me to list them all and then sort them and then link them to the files in the database itself. Ultimately, I would like to have every single TME linked to the full plan so I could click on the title and then the plan would open up for review and use. I am always moving forward on that job, but it is never finished.

I sort my TMEs by title, primary goals, author/composer, and TME originator (if different than author/composer). The last category comes in handy when someone introduces me to a great song written by someone else. I can credit the original composer and the person who comes up with the TME sequence. Always give credit where credit is warranted. These categories help me search through my TMEs to find what I need in the moment. I use this database most when I am working on my singabout mini editions because I only share my own TMEs - none of my interns' work is mine to use, so I am adamant about only using my original work. So, I use this database to indicate which TMEs are mine and which are not. It is a great way to find what I am looking for. I also use this to find specific ideas for specific goal areas.

When I go this deeply into the ideas, songs, experiences, interventions, and visuals that I have collected over the years, I always go into a nostalgic mood. I remember the clients and the music therapists that have shared these ideas over the years. I think about the clients that I have now in my groups, and I try to match the ideas to my current folks. I make lists of the TMEs that I know really well (the ones that I don't have to practice), and then I print off the ones that need some practice. To keep myself from being overwhelmed with new things all the time, I try to limit the TMEs that I need to practice to one per session type. This allows me to focus on client responses (the most important part of any therapy session, in my opinion) rather than having to look at sheet music to keep the musical interaction going. So, one less familiar TME to lead per session type (I usually have about five different session types per week) maximum and the rest of the TMEs that I use are familiar to me. It's fine if they are not as familiar to my clients, but I need to be able to focus on my clients' responses to the music and the TMEs in order to make their objectives work. I need to be able to sing and make the music without thinking too much about chords and melody lines. 

So, the first step - downloading all the different parts - is finished. I have uploaded all the files onto my various devices and cloud accounts, so now I can focus on straightening out the jumpdrive information so it can be used. Once that information is updated, I can transfer the updated files onto the cloud accounts. Until that point, though, I am going to focus on one thing at a time.

Next thing - make a list of all the new TMEs to be linked into my database. I do this on my Excel file - just type in the titles of all TMEs and their creators onto the database. After that job is finished, I will delete the things that came from my TME file and focus on the original and new-to-me TMEs that my interns bring into my clinic. After I have pared down the list a bit, I go through each file, looking at the therapeutic process and then adding my own ideas into the original files. I update my therapeutic purpose column in the database and then link the files with the titles on the database. After all of that gets finished, I then sort everything into the bigger file and am ready to use it all!

This is a forever project.

As I get ready to welcome intern #33 into my internship program, I am looking forward to sharing this TME database with her. As I get ready to offer the 34th position to another intern, I am thinking about how future interns will add to my compendium of TMEs. It is always so much fun to contemplate what ideas can be shared with future interns this way.

I will spend a little bit more time today on the second step of this project. While that is happening, I also need to communicate with intern #33 and send an acceptance letter to the chosen one for #34 - we will see if that applicant accepts or not...

Happy Tuesday, folks!