This article investigated AAC acceptance in patients with ALS, and found a significant increase in the past decade. The authors reported as many as 96% of people who are recommended to use AAC, do so in a timely manner. Additionally, the article mentioned that AAC use can be effective for patients with ALS until the last few weeks before death. The authors also examined the use of eye-tracking devices for patients with ALS and found several benefits for using this type of AAC system. I can use the information from this article to answer my clinical question by discussing the need to find an AAC device that matches an individual’s functional and motor capabilities in order to provide the most beneficial means of communication. This article …show more content…
Trends in the use and types of AAC were thoroughly described in terms of gender preferences, communication activities, and communication partners. These trends will be helpful in answering my clinical question because it provides information regarding what kinds of AAC systems a patient with ALS can benefit most from in different situations. Doyle and Phillips (2001) also identified factors such as “severity of speech impairment, functional status, and communication needs in different environments” that can influence what type of AAC system is recommended for the patient to receive the most effective means of communication (p. 167). Knowledge about these patient factors can allow a SLP to find an AAC system that matches the patient’s current needs and functional …show more content…
Informal caregivers were defined in this article as family and friends who provide unpaid assistance to a person with ALS. Thirty-four caregivers participated in this study, and each participant completed a Communication Device Use Checklist that outlined 4 main communication purposes including: expression of wants and needs, information transfer, social closeness, and social etiquette. The authors described each communication purpose in greater detail in the article. The checklist was used for the caregivers who support individuals with ALS to subjectively report the importance, mode, and frequency of use for each communication purpose. From a caregiver perspective, patients with ALS use their AAC devices for each communication purpose. One finding in particular I thought was important is that with the use of AAC, patients with ALS have the ability to express their wants and needs even as their speech deteriorates with progression of the disease. This is extremely important from a medical standpoint for the patient to be able to report their healthcare decisions. Furthermore, with the use of AAC, patients with ALS were reported to stay connected with their family and friends, which significantly improved their quality of life. Findings from the checklist also revealed adults with ALS used their AAC devices most often with face-to-face interactions; however, writing and email were other
Informal supports, such as aid for housekeeping and running errands, are crucial to maintaining the lifestyle of individuals with Alzheimer’s in the community; however, the disease’s erosion of physical, cognitive, and communicative abilities often creates tremendous strain for family caregivers. Individuals and family caregivers dealing with Alzheimer’s often experience increasing social isolation as the disease’s progression undermines both mobility and the capacity for meaningful and appropriate engagement with the community (Banerjee et al., 2003). A number of studies have documented the physical and mental health costs borne by unsupported caregivers, and the link between caregiver stress and the institutionalization of their ill family members (Andren & Elmstahl, 2005; Banerjee et al., 2003). Taken together, the stress and isolation of dealing with Alzheimer’s disease undermine the health and quality of life of everyone involved, eventually precipitating institutionalization.
There are many everyday devises that we hearing people take for granted, among these are telephones, smoke alarms, doorbells, and alarm clocks. When we look at how members of the deaf community use these everyday items we must consider that members within the community have very different communication needs, abilities, and preferences. Hard-of-hearing people for example can use a standard telephone with the addition of a headset or amplifier, while some hard-of-hearing people may prefer a TTY deaf persons rely on it, or a relay service to communicate as we (hearing people) would on a telephone.
Dementia is common among a large population of elderly people. The disease affects not only the individual diagnosed, but also the caregivers that work towards making their life comfortable in the end. Understanding and learning about the disease is crucial in helping those that experience or live with someone who has dementia. The services and support that are currently in affect for elderly people with dementia and the caregivers is poor, and ineffective because of the lack of research and information on the topic.
3.2 list different techniques that can be used to facilitate positive interactions with an individual with dementia
Specific Purpose: To help people to understand what Audism is and that the lack of an ability to hear does not mean they are incapable of performing tasks.
Jasmin, Luc. "Communicating with Someone with Aphasia." nlm.nih.gov. Ed. David Zieve. Medline Plus, 22 May 2012. Web. 12 Mar. 2014.
One major reason ALS is such a frightening disease is because no cure has been established. Although no effective treatment has been developed, a number of drug trials have been conducted, and there are some devices designed to help ALS patients maintain independence as well as safety as the disease progresses.
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Web. The Web. The Web.
...tic devices, wheelchairs and rolling walkers can be used to support movement. Communication aids, such as computers with communication devices can be used to help with speech (NINDS; Bachrach, 2012).
Imagine if you loss control of your body but your mind stayed unaffected. You would be a prisoner in your own body, all leading up to your death sentence. That is the sad fate for the people diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). “Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disorder was first described by Ran in 1850. This description was then expanded in 1873 by Charcot, who emphasized the involvement of the corticospinal tracts. In the United States, ALS is often referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease, after the famous ball player who was stricken by the disease in the midst of his career. (Yale School of Medicine, 2014)” In this paper will go through the definition, the process, the signs, the risk factors, etiology, and discus the known people that have suffered with this terminal disease.
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. (November 2002). Retrieved October 17, 2004, from http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing/coch.asp
National Institute of Health. (2011). National Institute on Deafness and other communication disorders: Improving the lives of people who have communication disorders. National Institute on
Assistive technology is often used by individuals with a learning disability. A learning disability “describes a neurobiological disorder in which a person’s brain works or is structured differently” (Lee1). A person’s abilities can be severely affected from a learning disability. They may listen differently, talk differently, write, spell, organize, and work with school subjects in a different way. Learning disabilities also affect people’s individual and personal lives to a great extent. According to the National Institutes of Health, one in seven children has a learning disability. The disability manifests itself when the child shows difficulty in reading, writing, spelling, and conversing with others. The added time they need to process information may make them seem less intelligent then others around them, but this is not the case. Individuals with learning disabilities are just as smart as anyone else; they just need to learn in a different way. The earlier a learning disability is noticed and detected, the earlier a child may be able to learn how to deal with or compensate for it (Lee 1). This is where assistive technology comes into play.
Through her incredible journey, Carly Fleischmann struggled to live a normal life after learning that she has been diagnosed with Autism and Oral Motor Apraxia. Autism is a severe developmental disorder that appears in the first three months after birth. Common features include persistent deficits in communication and social interactions, along with repetitive pattern behaviors or activities. Oral Motor Apraxia is a motor speech disorder with varying symptoms that depend on the age of the individual, and their severity. In Carly’s case, at ten years old she had shown continued delays in language and began to use a communication device called DynaWrite. This device enabled Carly to express her opinions and thoughts through a keyboard since she was unable to speak.
Weeks, S. K (1995). What are the educational needs of prospective Family Caregivers of newly disabled adults? Rehabilitation Nursing, 20(5), 256 – 60, 272.