Music therapy for health workers to reduce stress, mental workload and anxiety: a systematic review.

This article systematically reviews the efficacy of music interventions, specifically music therapy (MT) and music medicine (MM), on stress-related outcomes among health care workers experiencing genuine care-related stress. MT involves individualized therapeutic goals delivered by credentialed music therapists, whereas MM includes other music-based interventions typically administered by health professionals without a therapeutic relationship. The review of seven eligible studies found that music interventions generally reduced stress, anxiety, mental workload, burnout risk, and psychosomatic symptoms, with some evidence favoring customized playlists in MT over generic MM. However, heterogeneity in study designs, small sample sizes, and incomplete reporting limit definitive conclusions, and further rigorous research is needed to clarify the comparative benefits of MT versus MM and optimal intervention protocols for this population.