Increasing opportunities for functional communication learning in rehabilitation for people with aphasia post-stroke

Key Contact: Ciara Shiggins

Email: c.shiggins@uea.ac.uk

About 150,000 people in the UK have a stroke each year. One third of stroke survivors experience aphasia, a communication disorder affecting speaking, understanding, writing and reading. Increasing a person’s participation through functional, everyday communication is a key objective of aphasia rehabilitation.

This study investigates the mechanisms of speech and language therapy with a functional goal and how functional communication learning opportunities in routine rehabilitation can be optimised. A systematic review will identify the processes of learning that take place in speech and language therapies with a functional goal. An observational study of interactions between people with aphasia and healthcare professionals will be used to evaluate learning mechanisms. Interviewing will be used to evaluate subjective experiences of rehabilitation participants, both healthcare professionals and people with aphasia.