Can You Hear Me? Exploring the use of a sing‐along audio program as a method for creative community engagement in times of continued isolation

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundLoneliness in older adults has been linked to accelerated cognitive and functional decline. Furthermore, lonely individuals are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. This was before COVID‐19 and the isolation that older adults are experiencing disproportionately. Engagement in singing groups and other creative experiences has been shown to address the health and wellbeing of older adults, including their experience of connectedness, loneliness and isolation. Can You Hear Me? was developed as an alternative to in‐person singing groups in times of continued isolation due to the COVID‐19 pandemic.Method Can You Hear Me? is a sing‐along audio program highlighting the voices and music of elders in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. Unlike typical receptive audio programs, Can You Hear Me? has participatory elements that give listeners the opportunity to sing along to familiar songs, learn about organizations in the area and how to get involved, and contribute to the show by sending in their responses to creative prompts. The program will also implement a repeat design 25‐item Listener Survey, which will be utilized to understand more about listeners’ wellbeing and perceptions of loneliness and aging, as well as for quality improvement.ResultNow in its second season, this podcast‐style audio program is exploring an alternative model for creative individual and community engagement. Strategic community partners are assisting in the development of the program as a resource for individuals living in the community with Alzheimer’s disease and their carers, as well as in care homes when group engagement is still not feasible or possible.ConclusionIn the absence of a cure for dementia, Alzheimer’s, or COVID‐19, it is imperative that we work to build ways for elders to be socially connected wherever they live and provide opportunities for them to engage actively and creatively. Can You Hear Me? provides just such an initiative, to be a model for arts‐driven community engagement through an audio program that not only addresses health inequities and stigmas of aging and dementia, but also has the capacity to enhance wellbeing and connect people, even in times of isolation.