We Have Georgia On Our Mind!
The Thriving4Life nonprofit organization is working to bring its Art4Life program to Georgia Skilled Nursing Centers via a CMP grant to be funded by CMS - at no cost to your care center!
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Status: 116 Skilled Nursing Centers in Georgia have chosen to participate in the Art4Life Program grant. As of 8/29/2025, the grant has been approved at the state level by the Georgia Dept of Community Health. It is being sent forward to CMS (The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) for final consideration. Once approved, our goal is to launch the grant on 11/1/2025 - fingers crossed! We'll keep you informed!
WHAT IS THE ART4LIFE PROGRAM?
Art4Life is a therapeutic, expressive modaility with attention to art mediums and techniques best used with diverse populations. It's based on the principles of art therapy. This program differs from arts and crafts. Expressive art-making helps to foster a sense of personal autonomy and empowerment, self-expression, and an alternative means of communication.
WHAT WILL BE INCLUDED IF APPROVED? WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS OF YOUR CARE CENTER?
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The Thriving4Life organization will train your staff to provide this therapeutic program to the individuals you serve. From watercolors to colored pencils to acrylic paint and an array of other art mediums - this educational training is a combination of listening, learning, and a hands-on approach to establishing and maintaining a successful, proven, therapeutic, expressive art program that can remain a constant within your care center - benefitting residents, families, and staff.
What's Included
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- 2 or 3-Year Grant Period (depending on # of nursing centers participating)
- Staff Training Workshop via Live Webinar (Zoom) to facilitate the program. 2 to 10 staff from any disciplines/departments
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Access to Recorded, On-Demand Art-Based Exercises with an Art Therapist
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Refresher Training Opportunities
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High Quality Art Materials for 20 Residents
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Manual including Resources, Step-by-Step Checklist, and Implementation Guide
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Written Acknowledgement of Participation for Staff
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4 Continuing Education Hours - Multiple Disciplines
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Care Center Listed on our "Participating Communities" page via our website - so others can find you!
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Program Support
What's Required
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We’ve gone to great lengths to minimize and simplify requirements. We provide the forms with most questions being a 1 to 5 or a yes/no with no reporting writing.
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Training Data: Pre and post-training questionnaire for staff to evaluate content and benefit to staff.
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Resident Impact Data: 2 Short Forms to be completed on a “sampling” of participants. Staff can choose a maximum of 10 residents to be in their “Data Group." No matter how many residents are participating in art sessions, only a sampling are followed for impact. Reporting Periods: Baseline, at 3-Months & 6-Months. That’s it!
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Satisfaction Survey: A 1-page document reported at the 9-Month mark. Staff, residents, and/or family may complete. Only 1 survey is required, but a center can submit as many as they like.
WHEN WILL THIS PROJECT BEGIN IN GEORGIA?
Grants take months to secure. Once approved, we anticipate the project could begin in approximately November of 2025.
WHAT RESULTS HAVE SKILLED NURSING CENTERS REALIZED WITH THE ART4LIFE PROGRAM?
Check out our knock-your-socks-off results from South Carolina and Tennessee projects. We've seen increased communication, positive interactions, enhanced staff-resident relations, enhanced quality of life, increased engagement and socialization, decreased depression and behaviors, reduced anxiety, reduced antipsychotic med use, and more.
APPROVED FOR 4 CONTINUING EDUCATION HOURS
The Art4Life program training has been approved for CE Hours. Who's eligible? Administrators, Nursing, Activities/Life Enrichment, Social Services, Therapy and Medical Services Staff. However, any staff member from any department may be part of the Art4Life team, if they complete the required trainings.
YOUR ORGANIZATION WILL BE ADDED TO OUR LIST OF PARTICIPATING CENTERS
Thriving4Life will add your care center's name and contact information to our list of Art4Life program participating communities - once the project is approved and your care center completes program training. We do this to spotlight care centers that go beyond basic care to provide therapeutic programs to their residents. Take a look at our listing in other states!
This initiative for Georgia Skilled Nursing Centers is a program of the Thriving4Life nonprofit organization.
Upon grant approval, funding to be provided compliments of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in partnership with the Georgia Department of Community Health - Healthcare Facility Regulation Division.