This grant builds upon the team's prior work retrospectively evaluating Music & Memory, by capturing detailed data that will enable rigorous evaluation. In the R21 pilot, the team led by Drs. Vincent Mor and Ellen McCreedy refined training and implementation protocols in four nursing centers, while ensuring the feasibility of data linkage and measurement strategies.

In the R33 trial, 81 nursing centers across the US are being randomized to implement the program immediately or in one of two successive waves, while the research team evaluates the impact on resident outcomes. The combined R21/R33 was initially described in a prior article.