Volunteer Harpist Serves Patients and Caregivers at Intermountain Sevier Valley Hospital

It’s normal to feel worried when sick and seeking care or visiting at a hospital. Staff and volunteers attempt to create a center reassuring atmosphere for healing, and harpist Jennifer Nackowski volunteers her talents playing music to help care seekers and visitors feel more at ease while inside Intermountain Sevier Valley Hospital in Richfield, Utah.

“It creates a different atmosphere,” said one hospital patient. “It almost gives you goosebumps.”

Nackowski is a gifted harpist. Her experienced fingers glide over the strings as she plays, picking out notes that fill the hospital with beautiful music. Stress and worry seem like a distant memory and the mood noticeably shifts when Nackowski plays. Caregivers, patients, and visitors slow down to enjoy the sound of the harp. Their frequent smiles, nods, and waves are indicators that her music strikes a chord.

“People are quick to compliment the music and to tell me how it makes them feel,” Nackowski said.

Surprisingly, Nackowski has not been playing long. She started about 15 years ago when she crossed paths with a Certified Music-Thanatologist while working in the homecare industry. This woman was hired to provide bedside harp music for a patient at the end of life.

Music-thanatology, Nackowski explained, is a clinical-musical modality that unites music with end-of-life care. Harp and voice are used at the bedside offering prescriptive music to address the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of patients and their families.

“I was amazed at the way people responded to the harp music,” she said.

Inspired, Nackowski began taking lessons at the age of 59 from the very same woman with whom she’d crossed paths. She recounts that she had little prior musical experience, and this early mentorship was invaluable. She quickly learned how to use melody, harmony, tempo, volume, and rhythm to meet the special needs of the dying. It wasn’t long before Nackowski was ready to pursue music-thanatology on her own, and she left to study in Oregon.

Nackowski completed a two-year program and returned to Utah as a Certified Music-Thanatologist. Right away, she began working and doing what she loved: touching lives. Nackowski traveled the state offering harp music for end-of-life patients and their families and made many fond memories.

“Working as a music-thanatologist, offering harp music for people at the end of life, has been the most rewarding and satisfying occupation of my life,” Nackowski said.

Nackowski was able to enjoy a fulfilling career in music-thanatology for ten years before she met a crossroads. Faced with unprecedented patient-visitor restrictions during the COVID pandemic, she decided to retire. She then settled down in the Richfield area.

Although she no longer offered harp music at patients’ bedsides, Nackowski realized she still had much to offer. When an opportunity presented itself to play music at Sevier Valley Hospital, she quickly volunteered. It was a perfect fit. Her harp skills and the instrument’s tonal qualities were well suited for the cause.

“The resonance and vibration of the harp helps the body regulate breathing and can lower blood pressure,” Nackowski said. “Harp music is very soothing and can reduce restlessness, pain, and discomfort. It can bring about relaxation and sleep as well as lessening physical, emotional, and spiritual stress and anxiety.”

Nackowski’s music has made a difference at the hospital. Restless hearts and anxious feelings find relief for a while. Patients, visitors, and caregivers are appreciative. Nackowski is also grateful for the opportunity.

“It’s an honor to offer beautiful and peaceful harp music for patients and staff,” she says.

Nackowski plays weekly on Thursdays, and she hopes to continue doing so for a long time. Her unmistakable harp music fills the hospital, but can be heard most clearly in the main lobby where she plays. When seeking care or visiting, it’s a great spot to pause and listen.

About Intermountain Health

Headquartered in Utah with locations in seven states and additional operations across the western U.S., Intermountain Health is a nonprofit system of 33 hospitals, 385 clinics, medical groups with some 3,900 employed physicians and advanced care providers, a health plans division called Select Health with more than one million members, and other health services. Helping people live the healthiest lives possible, Intermountain is committed to improving community health and is widely recognized as a leader in transforming healthcare by using evidence-based best practices to consistently deliver high-quality outcomes at sustainable costs. For more information or updates, see https://intermountainhealthcare.org/news.