SingFit STUDIO Pro
Frequently Asked Questions
SingFit STUDIO Pro is a 1:1 therapeutic singing intervention that enables therapists, even those with no previous musical experience, to use music as an effective therapeutic tool.
SingFit STUDIO Pro can be incorporated into 1:1 in-person therapy sessions and virtual visits.
SingFit STUDIO Pro includes:
SingFit STUDIO music app and library (700+ songs)
Speech therapist and Music therapist-designed algorithms and prompts
Amazing clinical and technical support
SingFit STUDIO Pro turns music into medicine.
SingFit STUDIO Pro can be incorporated into therapy sessions to engage clients in a process that exercises their cognitive and communication skills, while simultaneously providing them with a sense of empowerment and joy.
SingFit STUDIO Pro increases client engagement enabling therapists to work longer with the client, and it translates into increased engagement in the therapeutic intervention being implemented to achieve the patient’s goals. As a collaborative music practice, SingFit STUDIO Pro elevates mood, but also helps create trust and rapport in the therapeutic relationship that leads to an increased number of sessions the client participates in.
SingFit STUDIO app can be downloaded onto any iOS or android device, including your personal phone.
Please make sure that you have a recent operating system (Apple: 12.0; Android 6.0).
We recommend a minimum of 12 GB of space available to download songs.
We recommend using external speakers that have good clear sound, are not muffled or distorted, and can be heard from 20 feet away.
If you are seeking to purchase new speakers, we have found that the Tribit XSound Go Bluetooth Speaker, the OontZ Angle 3 Ultra Waterproof, and JBL flip work well (~$37 - $100).
IPhone Users: If you are not going to use external speakers when using the app, please make sure the ringer on your iPhone is turned on. If your phone is on silent mode, you will not be able to hear music playing from the phone speakers.
Speech language pathologists (SLPs) and occupational therapists (OTs) report using SingFit STUDIO Pro effectively with clients 55+ who have cognitive decline and dementia (mild to advanced), aphasia, apraxia, Parkinson's disease, as well as other speech and language disorders/challenges.
SingFit STUDIO Pro supports your pre-existing patient goals / plan of care. SingFit STUDIO Pro can be used to increase overall engagement and compliance as well as to directly support therapeutic outcomes.
Research shows that singing engages a larger bi-hemispheric network in the brain than speaking and can support various health benefits, from helping restore speech after a traumatic brain injury to reducing agitation in people with dementia, without the harmful side effects of pharmaceuticals.
The SingFit STUDIO Pro intervention includes a music app and a therapeutic protocol, which enable a facilitator to create customized singing experiences for their clients.
The SingFit STUDIO App contains a proprietary lyric-coach prompter, which is an auditory word cueing system that speaks the lyrics before they need to be sung. The lyric-coach prompter:
Enables those with dementia or poor vision to actively engage in music making without having to read or remember the lyrics.
Digitizes the process of word cuing that is often used by music therapists and speech and language pathologists during therapy. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords credits this musical process to helping restore her speech after her traumatic brain injury.
The SingFit STUDIO app creates a custom playlist based on your participants health condition, goal, age, and preferred music. Also included are Age-Based and Genre playlists that enable therapists to quickly and easily engage any participant, without prior knowledge of their musical preferences. SingFit’s personalized playlists are filled with major hits from your client's teens and twenties. Songs from these years are often encoded into the neural networks of the brain that remain intact, even for those with cognitive decline.
Click here to read SingFit’s published research or here for more about the science of singing.
Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and occupational therapists (OTs) have used SingFit STUDIO Pro in skilled nursing facilities, assisted living and memory care facilities, outpatient clinics, as well as in homes.
SingFit STUDIO Pro is a dynamic intervention that can be used at any point throughout your typical therapy sessions depending on your goals.
Yes, therapy sessions including the use of SingFit STUDIO Pro to improve clients engagement and facilitate progress towards therapeutic goals have successfully received reimbursement.
Research has found that singing is a cross-hemispheric brain exercise that stimulates articulation, memory, attention and supports motor movements. Singing even engages a larger bi-hemispheric network in the brain than speaking and supports an increase of word production, which strengthens neural networks and can help prevent decline. Furthermore, singing has been shown to positively influence the neurochemicals and hormones that regulate mood, stress, agitation, heart rate variability, and blood pressure (i.e., including serotonin, melatonin, dopamine, oxytocin, and cortisol). Singing has also been shown to increase Immunoglobin A levels (by up to 240%) for immunity.
There are over 23 evidence-based studies (11 meta) that support the use of singing for
1) improving cognition, memory, and mood in people with dementia
2) decreasing anxiety in people with dementia
3) reducing blood pressure by 10-15% for hypertension management
4) supporting respiratory control and muscular strength for recovery from
influenzas
5) decreasing the use of psychotropic medications to manage anxiety as
well as behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia
6) increasing functional capacity, physiological resilience
For more information, visit https://www.singfit.com/science.
Results of Recent Pilot SingFit STUDIO Pro Study with 8 SLPs and OTs:
Average Pre to Post Mood Increase: 24.77%
Average Pre to Peak Mood Increase: 29.05%
Average Engagement Level (Out of 5): 4.04
Average Therapy Session Length: 40.46 minutes
Average length of SingFit STUDIO Pro usage in Therapy Session: 17.24 minutes
Average Percentage of Therapy Session Spent Using SingFit: 43%
"For Med B patients, before SingFit STUDIO Pro, I hardly ever went over 4 weeks of sessions (about 8 to 12 sessions) with a client, now with SingFit STUDIO Pro, I am seeing patients for 10 - 20 sessions." —Speech language pathologist about her clients with Moderate and Moderately Severe Dementia
“(During COVID) clients come to the session with a lower mood because right now life is heavy….with SingFit STUDIO Pro they leave joyful. And of course I feel better.” —Speech language pathologist about her clients with Mild Cognitive Impairment
"Pre-therapy sessions, one of my clients just sat around a lot and even when invited into activities she had little engagement in one to one and group activities...when we started with SingFit STUDIO Pro, she was really engaged from the beginning...and by discharge, her engagement in one to one and group activities outside of SingFit STUDIO Pro increased significantly...and she was coming up with more novel thoughts and episodic memories.” —SLP about her client with Moderate Dementia
“Julia gives me the best stories whenever we use SingFit. Songs reminded her of earlier times. Julia’s mood really did change after the session...I asked how the music helped and she said, ’I just felt so able.’ After another session, Julia even reported, ‘I feel so good. Did we really do therapy?’” —SLP about her client with Mild Cognitive Impairment
“I feel like that rapport has been built in the beginning of the session in doing something that they enjoy. It’s a smooth transition into whatever activity I have planned. So I feel like the engagement is there.” — SLP on introducing SingFit to her clients
“By session 2 her volume increased 20 decibels, both while singing and conversing after the song. No other activity has ever made her have this (spontaneous) response.” — SLP on Parkinson’s Client with Moderate Dementia
“Client L.N. can speak in full sentences but most of it is unintelligible. But after one of the SF songs, she was speaking in full sentences and was intelligible.” —SLP on Client with Severe Dementia and Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA)
"SingFit encouraged my clients to engage with the session and do a little more with things that were hard for them." —Eric O, Occupational Therapist on using SingFit with his long term clients
"SingFit is stimulating and is something he enjoys. Having that enjoyment in the session gives him something to look forward to." —Occupational Therapist on using SingFit with a client moderate to severe dementia
The key changer on the Song Player allows you to find the right vocal range for your participant. If the song is too high, simply stop the song and choose the low key.