Communication difficulties associated with aphasia may lead to significant barriers preventing people with aphasia (PWA) from expressing their needs and fully participating in decision-making regarding medical care and rehabilitation. The knowledge and skills needed for healthcare workers to engage successfully in conversation with PWA can be learned through communication partner training (CPT).    

The goal of this study conducted at the McGill University Health Center was to provide further evidence of the benefits of CPT in acute care by determining the effect of training in Supported Conversation for Adults with Aphasia (SCATM) on healthcare workers’ attitudes and confidence in communicating with PWA. SCATM training was carried out with a group of nurses, physicians and rehabilitation staff.  The participants completed a modified version of the Knowledge of Aphasia Scale before and after training to measure the impact it had on their perceptions of their interactions with PWA.  

Post training, the participants reported a higher level of knowledge about aphasia and that they used additional facilitating strategies when interacting with PWA.  The average number of communication goals increased and they also reported improvement in their confidence level for conversing with PWA.

 SCATM training was beneficial to this group of acute care healthcare workers in increasing their perceived level of knowledge of aphasia, their confidence level for communicating with PWA and in the number of strategies they reported using to facilitate communication.

COMMUNICATION PARTNER TRAINING OF NURSES AND REHABILITATION PROFESSIONALS TO IMPROVE COMMUNICATIVE ACCESS OF PEOPLE WITH APHASIA IN AN ACUTE CARE HOSPITAL