IC17: Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC) Training Course **TWO-DAY COURSE: 25-26 OCT** Day 1

This 2-day synchronous inperson training will prepare participants to use the Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC). The MATADOC is a standardized music-based assessment of awareness and intervention planning tool for working with patients with Disorders of Consciousness (DoC) and other minimally responsive populations. Participants will learn to: understand the clinical presentation of people with DoC; implement the MATADOC protocol; complete the MATADOC documentation;  formulate a diagnosis of awareness; and communicate the assessment findings to interdisciplinary teams and families. At the heart of this training is experiential work using video observation, practicing the protocol, and learning through case scenarios. Training tools include handouts and training videos that are accessible post-training to assist professionals in applying classroom learning to clinical session. Additional asynchronous training videos supplement the inperson materials.

The MATADOC has been standardized as an assessment of awareness for use with adults with DoC (Magee et al., 2014) and validated through research with the criterion standard DoC assessment of awareness - the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (Magee et al., 2023). The MATADOC is a useful assessment and treatment planning tool for other populations that are “minimally responsive”, including people with end-stage dementia (Magee et al., 2022) and children with DoC: a pediatric version for children and youth aged 2 – 18 years is currently being standardized (Pool et al., 2020) and has demonstrated face validity (Pool et al., 2025). It is relevant for clinical delivery in rehabilitation, skille nursing and intensive care settings. Participants will leave the training ready to deliver the MATADOC protocol and complete assessments.