sing people with aphasia to train health professionals in effective communication strategies over the internet

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Stroke; Aphasia; Stroke - Ischaemic; Stroke - Haemorrhagic; Physical Medicine / Rehabilitation - Speech therapy

• Registration Number: ACTRN12616000062426
• Lead Sponsor: Emma Finch

Brief Summary

Aphasia can be a pervasive language difficulty after stroke. Previous research has found that health professionals do not feel confident interacting with people with aphasia. This lack of confidence can impact negatively on patient - health professional relationships. There is a growing body of evidence to suggest that communication partner training can improve the confidence and knowledge of communication strategies of health professionals when interacting with people with aphasia. The aim of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of face-to-face versus telehealth delivery of a communication partner training program for increasing the confidence and knowledge of effective communication strategies among health professionals. A prospective, 2-arm randomised control trial with 1:1 allocation (face-to-face or telepractice CPT conditions) was conducted with 55 health professionals. Participants received a lecture about aphasia and communication strategies followed by the opportunity to practice the strategies with a person with aphasia. The face-to-face group received the lecture and conversation in face-to-face mode, while the Telehealth group received both elements over the internet. The results revealed that neither approach was superior. A limitation of this study was that no follow up was actioned to identify whether the improved confidence and use of effective skills for communication were ongoing. Further research is required.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Results First Posted: 1900-01-01
• Study Start: 2016-01-21
• Study Completion: 2016-12-31
• Last Update Posted: 13 January 2020

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 55

Inclusion Criteria

Participants will be Health professionals from a variety of allied health disciplines employed at the Princess Alexandra (PA) Hospital (Brisbane, Queensland). The people with aphasia will be currently attending an outpatient communication group at the Princess Alexandra Hospital. The people with aphasia will all be diagnosed with aphasia by a speech pathologist prior to their inclusion in the study and will not have any other neurological or developmental conditions.

Exclusion Criteria

Health professionals - inadequate English skills to consent and participate in the program; history of neurological conditions. People with aphasia - inadequate English skills to consent and participate in the program; history of other neurological or developmental conditions

Study & Design

• Study Type: Interventional
• Study Design: Not specified

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Change in confidence when communicating with people with aphasia using a customised 100mm visual analogue scale [Immediately before receiving the training and then immediately after the training.];Change in knowledge about effective strategies for communicating with people with aphasia (in the form of an open-ended content question)[Immediately before the training and immediately after receiving the training]

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Self-rated success of the communication partner training program by the person with aphasia on a customised 100mm visual anologue scale.[Immediately after the person with aphasia has participated in the conversation with the health professional]