Developing the Aphasia Therapy Finder - International Survey of Speech Pathologists
What did the researchers aim to find out?
1. To explore how speech pathologists choose aphasia therapy approaches and what access they have to aphasia therapy resources.
2. To explore what speech pathologists think about the Aphasia Therapy Finder (online tool with aphasia therapy resources)
What type of research was done?
Online Survey
Results of the research
Speech pathologists reported using forty-three (43) different types of aphasia therapy.
Therapy used by more than half (51% or more) of the participants were:
- Semantic therapy
- Multimodal therapy
- Functional and pragmatic therapy
- Phonological therapy
- Conversation Partner Training
- Verbal therapy
Where did speech pathologists learn about new therapies?
- Conferences
- Reading research literature
- Special Interest Groups
- Workplaces
Where did speech pathologists access resources to do therapy?
- Online from search engines (example, searching Google)
- Using personally relevant materials (example, photos from person with aphasia)
- Using existing resources at workplace
- Aphasia Therapy Software (example, computer programs or apps)
- Buying aphasia therapy resources (example, worksheets)
What influenced choice of therapy the most?
- Scientific evidence (research evidence to say this therapy works)
- How easy therapy is to do (based on time and resources needed)
- Being able to access resources in workplace
- Level of knowledge about therapy
What did speech pathologists think about the idea of the Aphasia Therapy Finder (online tool with aphasia therapy resources)?
Ninety-two percent (92%) of speech pathologists said they would use the online tool.
Why was the research done?
There are a large number of different aphasia therapies that have research evidence to say they help people with aphasia. We call therapies with research evidence, “evidence-based.” Selecting which evidence-based therapy to use can be challenging for speech pathologists. We want to find out more about how speech pathologists choose therapies and resources. We will use this information to help develop an online tool to make it easier for speech pathologists to access aphasia therapy resources.
What does the research mean for me and others?
This research will help researchers to develop the Aphasia Therapy Finder. This is an online tool containing aphasia therapy resources. This tool will make it easier for speech pathologists to find and use aphasia therapy resources. We hope this tool will help speech pathologists give you the best therapy (therapy that helps the most) based on research evidence.
Link to Aphasia Therapy Finder: https://aphasiatherapyfinder.com/
What research methods were used?
Data was collected from an online survey. Responses were described using statistics (counts and percentages).
How to obtain the treatment detailed in the research?
There was no treatment included in this research.
Background information on the research topic
There are a large number of different aphasia therapies that have research evidence to say they help people with aphasia. We call therapies with research evidence, “evidence-based.” Selecting which evidence-based therapy to use can be challenging for speech pathologists. Accessing relevant resources is a significant barrier to using therapies. We want to find out more about how speech pathologists choose therapies and resources. We will use this information to help develop an online tool to make it easier for speech pathologists to access aphasia therapy resources.
Risks related to the research
There were no risks to speech pathologists participating in this study.
Who was allowed to take part in the research?
Speech pathologists or other professionals.
Information about the people who took part
176 participants took part in the survey. Ninety-Four percent (94%) were speech pathologists. Participants were from different countries around the world. Most people were from developed countries (94%). The countries with the highest number of participants were: United States of America (26%), Australia (24%), United Kingdom (20%) and Norway (11%). Speech pathologists worked with people with aphasia in a variety of workplace settings (for example, hospitals, community rehabilitation, private practice).
Why was the research done this way?
An online survey was used because this is a convenient way to survey lots of people around the world. It also does not cost a lot of money.
When was the research done?
2021
Where was the research done?
The research included aphasia researchers from around the world (majority in developed countries).
Where did the money came from?
This research was conducted by the Collaboration of Aphasia Trialists (CATS) supported by a project grant from the Tavistock Trust for Aphasia (UK). Katie Monnelly is funded by a postgraduate fellowship from the Stroke Association (UK) and a PhD studentship from the School of Health and Psychological Sciences at City, University of London. Miranda Rose is funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council Centre of Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation and Recovery.
Problems with the research
The online survey was in English. Twenty-four percent (24%) of speech pathologists did not have English as their first language. Only six percent (6%) of speech pathologists were from developing countries. More research is needed to include people from different cultures who do not speak English (culturally and linguistically diverse populations). More research is needed to include people from developing countries.
Is the research trustworthy?
Yes. Decisions made in the research design were clearly documented to make the research more trustworthy. Two researchers worked together to analyse data.
Next steps
We will be doing more research to develop the Aphasia Therapy Finder. This is an online tool containing aphasia therapy resources. This tool will make it easier for speech pathologists to find and use aphasia therapy resources. We will work with website designers, technology experts and speech pathologists to develop the Aphasia Therapy Finder. The Aphasia Therapy Finder will be in English. More research is needed to translate resources to other languages in the future.
