Doreen Alexander – interview

In a 100-minute oral history interview, music therapist Doreen Alexander describes her training in the fledgling Music Therapy Program at Capilano College, the geriatric psychiatric patient population and physical situation at Valleyview Hospital (Riverview), and the challenges and successes of bringing music and other creative therapies into the workplace of orthodox mental health professionals. Alexander concludes her interview by describing her subsequent career as a music therapist at the University of British Columbia’s Purdy Pavilion, a long term care facility.

Key Words: music, music therapy, music therapy education, music therapy philosophy, leadership, mental health professionals, funding, funding cuts, humanism, geratric patients, mental health patients, rehabiliation, dementia, dementia care, seniors, history, creative arts therapies, Doreen Alexander, Moyra Jones, Purdy Pavilion, Valleyview Hospital, Riverview Hospital, University of British Columbia, UBC, Capilano College, Capilano University.