Group therapy and life participation approach to aphasia intervention

Question 1

Social approaches to aphasia intervention

Answer 1

• Used once a person has plateaued
• Promote membership in a communicating society and participation in personally relevant activities

Question 2

Basic principles of a social approach (9)

Answer 2

1. Address both information exchange and social needs
2. Address communication withing authentic, natural contexts
3. View communication as dynamic/flexible/multidimensional
4. Focus on collaborative nature of comm
5. Focus on natural comm esp convo
6. Focus on personal/social consequences of aphasia
7. Focus on adaptation to impairment
8. Embrace perspective of those with aphasia
9. Encourage qualitative as well as quantitative measures

Question 3

Life participation appoach to aphasia (LPAA)

Answer 3

• Consumer-driven service delivery approach
• Immediate and long term goals
• Focus on re-engagement in life
• PWA at centre of all decision making
• PWA helps select, participate in and design interventions
• Aims to strengthen participation in activities of choice

Question 4

5 core values of LPAA

Answer 4

1. Enhancing life participation
2. All PWA are entitled to service
3. Measurements of success include documented life-enhancement changes
4. Personal and environmental factors are targets of intervention
5. Emphasis on availability of services as needed at all stages of aphasia

Question 5

Life participation assessment for aphasia

Answer 5

Assessment for Living with Aphasia (ALA)
- Severity of aphasia
- Participation and activities
- Personal/emotion/identity factors
- Environment as support/barrier

Communicative Profiling System (CPS)
- Approach to assessment based on qualitative research methods
- Interviews, personal journals, observations
- Used to identify the person’s social relationships, emotions, situational contexts of participation and personally relevant behaviours

Question 6

Goals of intervention in social approach

Answer 6

• Enhancing natural communication
• Increasing successful participation
• Providing support systems within PWA’s community
• Increasing confidence and positive sense of self
• Promoting advocacy and social action

Question 7

Focus of group therapy for aphasia

Answer 7

• Impairment: specific speech/language skills
• Activity: everyday comm activities
• Participation: life participation approach
• Improved confidence, QOL, wellbeing

Question 8

What is involved in group therapy for aphasia?

Answer 8

• Physical setting: open/closed groups, duration/frequency, size, selection
• Preparation: group rules, measuring outcomes
• Types of groups: communication-focussed, psychosocial-focussed, transition groups (stages of rehab), groups for family members
• Focus on social consequences of aphasia
• Transactional and interactional functions of social communication
• Developing meaningful relationships
• Provides: support, hope, info, exchange of experiences/ideas, social contacts, psychosocial benefits, expressing feelings, confidence, assertiveness, self advocacy

Question 9

Measuring outcomes of group therapy

Answer 9

• Communication Interaction Rating Scale for Aphasia
• QOL tools