TimeSlips Responds with “Yes And” to COVID19 – Releasing Innovations

March 24, 2020

Press Release: TimeSlips Press Release – 20.03.24

March 24, 2020

For Immediate Release:

MILWAUKEE, WI: Around the world, the impact of COVID19 is being felt most acutely by older adults. Beyond the threats to physical health, the virus is taking a toll on in-home caregivers who suddenly find themselves isolated with their loved one or client, while care homes are “locked down” without access to visitors, volunteers, or the possibility of group activities.

A Wisconsin-based non-profit is providing resources to long-term care providers to keep residents inspired and engaged at home and in nursing facilities. TimeSlips was founded by MacArthur Fellow Anne Basting, PhD., a Professor at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. The organization offers training and resources to integrate meaningful engagement into care relationships and systems. Their evidence-based approach is a playful, creative improvisation method that has proven to have a positive impact on people who are living with dementia.

Basting, born and raised in Janesville, has long family roots in Wisconsin. “Our mission is to bring meaning and joy to late life,” she stated. “Now, more important than ever before, we need to connect creatively and help each other through this tumult.”

TimeSlips has responded to the COVID19 pandemic by rapidly developing and sharing an evolving set of resources that can be used by caregivers, family members, and others who are needing to find new ways to connect and engage with the senior community.

Some of TimeSlips’ resources include:

• A free weekly email for caregivers with ideas for creative engagement
• A webinar on engagement during a time of quarantine
• A “Creativity Center – with 100s of prompts, including “Beautiful Questions” and images to inspire creative stories
• A “#SpreadJoy” campaign encouraging students, families and interested individuals to send mail to residents/patients at facilities that have requested it (currently 60 and growing)
• Guidelines for volunteers to integrate Beautiful Questions into well-check phone calls.
• The ability to share an answer to a “Beautiful Question” via a toll-free number (or by mail or email), the recording of which will become part of a collaborative art project.
• A free template that artists can use to create a window mural at a residence or care home. Elders can paint from the inside, thus “collaborating” and connecting and still maintaining safety.
• Free, downloadable worksheets for creative projects that elders can do in their rooms on their own and in collaboration with others.

TimeSlips is offering all of these resources for free and is asking people to consider donating to help defray costs.