Comparing Communication Partner Training Programs for Healthcare and Service Workers in Supporting Individuals with Aphasia 

Presenter: Lea Fares

Group Members: Emma Stevens, Alyssa Marie Kenney

Faculty Sponsor: Jennifer Mack

School: UMass Amherst

Research Area: Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences

Session: Poster Session 6, 4:15 PM - 5:00 PM, Auditorium, A66

ABSTRACT

Aphasia is an acquired language disorder most often caused by brain damage, such as a traumatic brain injury or stroke. As is the nature of language disorders, in many cases, aphasia inhibits meaningful community participation and communication with unfamiliar individuals. There has been prior research done on Communication Partner Training (CPT) that shows improvements in the knowledge of these communication disorders and interactions, mainly among people in health care who are familiar with these disorders. There is a specific limitation in trying to communicate with people who are unfamiliar with aphasia or speech disorders, such as service or other customer-facing workers. The purpose of this study is to gather information about various CPT programs for unfamiliar partners and then to compare relevant programs for healthcare providers versus service workers. To achieve this goal, we will conduct an informal scoping review in which we will look at relevant literature on CPT programs for unfamiliar partners. We will analyze various components of the methods of delivery and outcomes of the reviewed CPT programs to understand their benefits and limitations. Our literature review will focus on comprehension strategies that support individuals with aphasia in expressing their thoughts and gaining support from their community members. Our goal is to improve comprehension strategies for service workers when interacting with individuals with aphasia, which will help create a better environment for both the workers and the individuals who have language disorders. This will ultimately encourage the meaningful community participation and relationship building of individuals with aphasia.

RELATED ABSTRACTS