Nursing Home Grant Program: Approved Projects

Projects approved by the Quality Assurance and Improvement Committee

Below you will find information on recently approved nursing home grant projects in Wisconsin. You can also visit the CMS Civil Money Penalty Reinvestment Program website to find resources developed through the nursing home grant program. CMS publishes and updates information about CMS funded projects annually.

Alzheimer’s Poetry Project LLC

Amount awarded: $10,000.00

Start date: 04/01/2026
End date: 07/31/2026

Status: Ongoing

Person Centered Care Creativity Training

The project goal is to address social isolation among nursing home residents by training nursing home staff and embedding Alzheimer’s Poetry Project (APP) person-centered care methods and techniques in the culture of the nursing homes.

Participating nursing homes (2): Newcastle Place, WI Veterans Home - Boland Hall

HealthCare Interactive, Inc

Amount awarded: $344,862.00

Start date: 04/01/2026
End date: 03/31/2029

Status: Ongoing

Improving Dementia Capability with CARES Dementia 5-Step Method

Participating nursing homes’ direct-care staff will receive training and certification in the CARES® Dementia 5-Step Method – enhancing staff engagement with residents and improving care delivery by teaching staff an evidenced-based, non-pharmacological approach to care.  The benefit to residents will be measured by 10% improvement (decrease) in antipsychotic usage rates.

Participating nursing homes (23): Alden Estates Of Jefferson, Alden Meadow Park Health Care Center, Inc, Capitol Lakes Health Center, Clairidge House, Columbus Health And Rehab, Crossroads Care Center Of Weyauwega, Dove Healthcare - Osseo, East Troy Manor, Edenbrook Of Platteville, Frederic Nursing And Rehabilitation Community, Mulder Health Care Facility, Nu Roc Health And Rehabilitation Center, Oakbrook Health And Rehabilitation, Pine View Care Center, Plum City Care Center, Prescott Nursing And Rehabilitation Community, Serenity Spring Senior Living At Scandia Village, Sun Prairie Senior Living, Tomah Nursing And Rehabilitation, Waters Edge Health And Rehabilitation Center, Waunakee Valley Senior Living, Willow Ridge Healthcare, Wood Aven Health And Rehabilitation

Java Group Programs LLC

Amount awarded: $486,000.00

Start date: 05/01/2026
End date: 04/30/2029

Status: Ongoing

Java Project Wisconsin 2026: From Loneliness to Belonging

Three programs (Java Music, Java Memory, Java Mentorship) targeting loneliness and social isolation will be implemented over a three-year period in participating nursing homes. The structured, evidence-based peer support and mentoring programs are designed to increase active participation, positive interactions, and activity enjoyment among residents experiencing varying degrees of dementia and social isolation.

Participating nursing homes (27): Alden Meadow Park Health Care Center, Inc, Bethany Home, Brookside Care Center, Colonial Health Services, Columbia Health Care Center, Crossroads Care Center Of Mayville (Avina Of Mayville), Edenbrook Of Fond Du Lac, Edenbrook Of Green Bay, Edgerton Care Center, Inc, Edgewater Haven Nursing Home, Elroy Health Services, Florence Health Services, Fond Du Lac Lutheran Home (Lutheran Home & Health Services), Golden Age Manor, Grancare Nursing Center, Green Bay Health Services, Hales Corners Care And Rehab Center LLC (Complete Care At Hales Corners), Hamilton Health Services, Kinnic Health And Rehabilitation Center, Maple Ridge Health Services, Meadowbrook At Oconto Falls, Mulder Health Care Facility, Orchard Manor, Pine Crest Nursing Home, Shawano Health Services, St Clare Care And Rehab Center (Complete Care At Jefferson Meadows), St Mary's Care And Rehab Center LLC

Golden Age Manor

Amount awarded: $14,925.00

Status: Ongoing

Wound Care Specialty Program

Golden Age Manor (GAM) is a skilled nursing home located in a rural area with limited resources and funding. A significant number of residents have specific wounds or multiple wounds, new or chronic ostomies, and incontinent conditions which require skilled nursing care. Additionally, many residents have diabetes, resulting in delayed wound healing and increased risk of foot ulcers. Currently, nurses are only taught basic wound care assessments and interventions. Through the Wound Care project, Golden Age nurses will be able to become certified by the "Wound Ostomy and Continence" program which will result in higher quality of care for residents. Having nurses with advanced wound care and podiatry knowledge will help reduce resident complications and limit the amount of extra resources that it takes to heal a wound. Goals include improved healing time of acute wounds by 10% and chronic wounds by 25%.

Ageless Innovation

Amount awarded: $186,094.13

Status: Complete

Furry Friends Project

Ageless Innovation is seeking to enrich the lives of Wisconsin skilled nursing facility residents living with dementia with the Furry Friends Project. The goals of the project are to improve the quality of life of residents living with dementia by introducing assistive robotic companion pets, which provide a practical alternative to traditional pet therapy. Robotic companion pets have been shown to have therapeutic effects by providing a non-pharmacological intervention for distressed residents while providing respectful, person-centered and individualized care for those who have benefited from lifelong interactions with pets such as dogs and cats.

Therapeutic Harp and Flute

Amount awarded: $16,540.00

Status: Complete

Grant Extension:

Amount awarded: $3,960.00

Status: Ongoing

Live Therapeutic Music, Ainsworth Hall, Wisconsin Veterans Home, King Wisconsin

The purpose of the live therapeutic music project will focus on nursing home residents with late-stage dementia and limited psycho-social interaction. Live therapeutic music can be a valuable and a unique intervention to improve resident health care. Music is an art based on the science of sound. A therapeutic musician uses the inherent healing elements of live music to enhance the environment for the residents in the nursing home setting, making it more conducive to the healing process.

Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin Educational Foundation

Amount awarded: $151,696.69

Status: Complete

Cycling Without Age (CWA)

The purpose of the project is to provide safe and engaging piloted-cycling along bike paths and greenway trails for nursing home residents. Cycling Without Age (CWA) will train 280 pilots of trishaws (two-seat, three-wheel bikes) and 20 train-the-trainer pilots who will coordinate rides for residents within 54 Wisconsin skilled nursing facilities. CWA will engage in a variety of outreach efforts to reach and recruit volunteer pilots and participating skilled nursing facilities Cycling Without Age provides a welcome, safe, and enriching recreational outlet for residents.

Wisconsin Health Care Association and Wisconsin Center for Assisted Living

Amount awarded: $269,612.38

Status: Complete

Back to the Basics: Pressure Injuries and Diabetic Neuropathic Foot Ulcers

The purpose of this project is to prevent an increase in the number of avoidable pressure injuries and diabetic foot ulcers from occurring. The program will provide ready-to-use evidence-based training and competency evaluation for licensed staff and certified nursing assistants (CNAs). In addition to the reduction of avoidable pressure injuries, the project aims to support the improved identification of neuropathic foot ulcers allowing for more effective treatment and improved resident outcomes. This project will also recognize the CNAs as integral to pressure injury prevention practices.

Hillside Manor

Amount awarded: $16,540.00

Status: Complete

Cycling Without Age- MMC-BD Hillside Manor

The project aims to increase social connectedness of Hillside Manor residents by establishing and maintaining a Cycling Without Age (CWA) program, which provides trishaw vehicles and volunteer pilots. The CWA project has been identified as an intervention that will promote protective factors that build sense of belonging and an opportunity for connection to physical and social places in home and community for residents of skilled nursing facilities. The project intends to build and increase the presence of meaningful relationships between Hillside Manor and Marshfield Medical Center, staff, volunteers, Hillside Manor residents and families, and community members.

The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater

Amount awarded: $80,041.92

Status: Complete

Project UNSILO: University Students to Address Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults

UNSILO addresses social isolation and loneliness and enhances social connectedness to improve the quality of life in older adults with an intergenerational volunteer training program. UNSILO will recruit 36 student volunteers to be trained and engage with 90% of nursing home residents and using technology to deliver TimeSlips during the COVID-19 pandemic and high-influenza season. In addition to engaging nursing home residents and addressing social isolation, the project aims to improve quality of life for all residents engaged in this programs and has the potential to promote student interest in aging and grow a much-needed long-term care workforce.

Maryhill Manor, Inc.

Amount awarded: $6,970.00

Status: Complete

Maryhill Manor: Building Competent and Empathetic Care Partners for Persons Living with Dementia

The project aims to improve the quality of care for long-term residents at Maryhill Manor with dementia. Dementia Live® provides an experiential learning program that simulates cognitive and sensory experiences of affected individuals. Staff members will be appointed as Dementia Live® coaches and Results Measurement Coordinator. The project will aim to lower behaviors and improve communication and relationships.

Center for Community Stewardship

Amount awarded: $99,000.00

Status: Complete

Alzheimer's Poetry Project

The project uses telepresence robots to improve the quality of life of people living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia by facilitating creative expression through poetry and other arts including music and movement. The Center for Community Stewardship will provide eight hours of staff training to six Wisconsin nursing homes in an arts intervention program titled Alzheimer’s Poetry Project (APP), conduct dementia arts mapping at each of the nursing homes, and provide two events in a Prime Speaker Series each week for 36 weeks (72 total events.)

Four Winds Manor

Amount Awarded: $4,727

Status: Complete

The Effect of Environmental Improvements on Lives of Residents with Dementia

Four Winds Manor will provide a specialized training for staff who care for residents with dementia and provide enrichment tools to actively involve the residents, including modifying the environment. Throughout this project, Four Winds Manor will provide staff training using resources from the Department of Health Services and outside resources including building a DVD training library for new employees. Four Winds Manor will provide training to staff on ways to help family members interact with the resident; investigate tools, games, and other activities to benefit the residents. The facility will purchase training videos, virtual reality glasses, and other materials for the benefit of the residents; research and evaluate methods to modify the environment to enrich each resident's life and provide a more home-like, calm, inviting feeling in the facility.

North Central Health Care

Amount awarded: $23,000

Status: Complete

Stop Starting It!

The "Stop Starting It" program is an interpersonal skills workshop developed to help caregivers assess attitudes, reframe perspectives, and practice interpersonal skills for working with people with dementia. Participants will learn how to promote an overall environment of positive language and behaviors when working with people with dementia. The workshop will be held for 30–40 attendees at 10 locations throughout Wisconsin in 2017 and early 2018. Pre- and post-test information will be collected at each presentation and used to evaluate the effectiveness of the training.