Improving Care through Improv

Dr. Candace L. Kemp, Gerontology Institute
Dr. Jennifer Craft Morgan, Gerontology Institute

Globally, over 55 million individuals are living with dementia. In the absence of a cure, innovations in clinical practice are needed to promote care interactions that lead to positive outcomes for care recipients and their care partners, including family, friends, direct care workers, and other care providers. The Gerontology Institute is addressing this need with “Improving Care through Improv,” an interdisciplinary research agenda and set of training programs involving Dr. Candace L. Kemp and Jennifer Craft Morgan.

Research, including work by Drs. Kemp and Morgan, points to the potential benefits of training dementia care partners to use improvisational (improv) theatre techniques. Improv refers to "unplanned collaborative performance" and requires being in the moment, self-awareness, and responsiveness to others.

“Improving Care through Improv” was co-developed by Dr. Kemp and Amanda Lee Williams of Improving through Improv in collaboration with Dad’s Garage Theatre Company in Atlanta, GA. The initial training program was created for the geriatric workforce with support from Georgia Gear. After receiving a development award from Emory Roybal Center for Dementia Caregiving Mastery, which is funded by the National Institute on Aging, the team adapted and expanded the curriculum and began testing the training among family members and friends caring for someone living with dementia.

Improving Care through Improv: Geriatric Workforce Enhancement

The Gerontology Institute’s collaborative work focused on geriatric workforce enhancement involves programing for physicians, nurses, other health care professionals, and direct care workers, especially certified nursing assistants in nursing homes and assisted living communities. This work is supported, in part, by Georgia Gear, Emory University’s Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program, which is funded by the Health Services and Resources Administration. Additional information about programing and training options can be found at Improving Care through Improv.

Improving Care through Improv: Promoting Mastery in the Moment

The Gerontology’s collaborative work focused on training family members and friends of persons living with dementia began with the project, “Improving Care through Improv: Promoting Mastery in the Moment.” The team is engaged in testing the feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy of the 4-week training program aimed at promoting care partner mastery and well-being and quality of life persons living with dementia. Preliminary findings show promise.

Publications:

Kemp, C.L., Anglin, E., Morgan, J. C., Perkins, M. M.,Burgess, E. O., Bender, A. A.. (accepted 01/02/2025). Differing realties among assisted living residents with dementia: Understanding care partner responses. The Gerontologist. NO DOI YET

 Kemp, C. L., Morgan, J. C., Bender, A. A., Hill. A. M., Anglin, E., Burgess, E. O., Epps, F., & Perkins, M. M. (2024). “Just join them”: Improv and dementia care. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 43(3), 302-309. https://doi.org/10.1177/07334648231203195

Kemp, C. L., Bender, A. A., Morgan J. C., Burgess, E. O., Epps, F. R., Hill, A. M., & Perkins, M. M. (2023). Understanding capacity and optimizing meaningful engagement among persons living with dementia. Dementia, 22(4), 854-874. https://doi.org/10.1177/14713012231162713

Kemp, C. L., Bender, A. A., Ciofi, J., Morgan, J. C., Burgess, E. O., Duong, S., Epps, F. R., Hill, A. H., Manley, P. R., Sease, J., & Perkins, M. M. (2021) Meaningful engagement among assisted living residents with dementia: Successful approaches. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 40(12), 1751-1757. https://doi.org/10.1177/0733464821996866

This work was supported by a developmental grant to Dr. Candace Kemp from the Roybal Center for Dementia Caregiving Mastery at Emory University (P30AG064200 - Co-Directors, Hepburn and Perkins) funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Additional support comes from the Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program (Georgia Gear) of Emory University supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (U1QHP33070, Project Director: Johnson; U1QHP53036, Project Co-Directors Johnson and Moore). The contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by NIA, NIH, HRSA, HHS, or the United States Government.