• MISCI Information     

MISCI-CE  is a new, evidence-informed program that pairs younger adults with  older people screened for loneliness and social isolation to build a  relationship through a creative project they choose to complete together  during regular meetings over the course of three months.

Younger people age >18*  and older people in San Francisco are invited to participate in our  2019 study of the MISCI program. This project began under the umbrella  of the Atlantic Fellowship for Equity in Brain Health at the Global Brain Health Institute based at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center and Trinity College, Dublin with a multidisciplinary research team. Minerva University and Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly (LBFE) are inaugural partners and in 2018-2019 OpenHouse joined as a community-based partner along with students at San Francisco State University and at the University of San Francisco.  The 2018-2019 pilot included thirty older people. Each participating  older person was matched with two younger partners. Beginning in Fall,  2019, the program will engage 20 older people per session.

Loneliness and social isolation are key risk factors for developing dementia and other health problems as we age.1 Interventions like this, if scaled, could prevent up to 44 million cases of dementia over the next 20 years.2-3 Furthermore,  the AARP and other leaders in the field have identified social  engagement as a key priority for health of all kinds.4 MISCI  combines creative projects with intergenerational visits because  studies have shown that psychosocial interventions work best when using  more than one modality.

People  ages 18+* may be eligible to participate in the Spring MISCI Pilot for  Creative Engagement (MISCI-PCE) with the following features

• Pre-program training and matching
   Learn  about brain health and how best to minimize bias and maximize  productive collaboration across differences. Get matched with another  younger participant and an older participant who will be your MISCI  partners.
• Creative project development and just-in-time support
   Develop  your project together with your MISCI partners in 2 two-hour  meetings/month. Connect with other students and project leads for  additional training, trouble-shooting, and mutual support. Share the  creative project at the final celebration.
• Reflection 
   In short journal entries, ongoing coaching and training, and brief surveys, consolidate your learning.
• Certification
•  Participants  who complete the program successfully will earn a MISCI-PCE Certificate  from the Global Brain Health Institute. 

Participants can find resources and materials pertinent to their MISCI Program at one of these links:

MISCI-Pilot for Creative Engagement (MISCI-CE) Agendas, Forms, Resources

MISCI Developmental Study, Spring 2018

MISCI-Pilot for Creative Engagement (MISCI-CE), Fall 2018

MISCI-CE Certification requirements

Spring 2020 Application Now Open!

Apply now for the Spring 2020 Session! Feel free to contact us with any questions.

Created by  Phaedra Bell, last modified on Dec 02, 2019