Traveling the pathway of aphasia recovery is not for sissies. Those who attempt that journey deserve the finest tools, resources and support known to mankind. Well-designed and well-managed groups provide invaluable social support, treatment, and practice time (Connors, 2009) for people with aphasia [PWA] and those who assist them.
In this newsletter we will discuss the issues of :
- what constitutes a group
- what are the benefits of participation in the group process
- a history of aphasia groups
- group resources.
Our second newsletter in this series, scheduled for release later week, will discuss our online, small group program.
What is a group?
A group can be considered a collection of 3 or more people who share an identity and a purpose. The group exists so that the members can help each other to achieve the goals of the group and the individual members by communicating, interacting and engaging.
What are the benefits of group work?
As Benjamin Franklin said,"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." Collaborative work in groups provides important opportunities that individual treatment work lacks. First, it provides the social support inherent in human interaction especially with those who share a life-changing event such as stroke or head injury. Secondly, it offers the opportunity to learn both directly and vicariously from others by observing, listening and watching. Thirdly, social work demands communicative engagement, collaboration and reciprocal action, all critical for maximizing aphasia recovery. Fourthly, it creates favorable conditions for PWA to practice their skills learned in therapy sessions in a safe, comfortable social environmentwith their peers. Finally, it provides the speech therapist the chance to do formative assessment with his/her client, assessing progress and growing the individual treatment plan by direct observation of the patient in action with others.
What is the history of group work in aphasia treatment?
A history of research exists supporting the effectiveness of group aphasia treatment (Kearns and Elman, 2001). Identified benefits of group work presented in the traditional literature include: opportunities for socialization and practice of communication strategies; peer conversational interaction; supplement to individual treatment; and social support. Mackie and Damico (2009) extended the discussion of aphasia group activities demonstrating how the use of engagement in groups can add affective engrossment and promote successful group interaction. Antonucci (2009) discussed the benefits of using a specific treatment technique, semantic feature analysis, during discourse in a group context.
Resources:
Now for the $20,000question:
How can we best take advantage of innovative technology and multidisciplinary fields of study to translate aphasia group research and evidence into affordable, accessible and effective tools for PWA traveling the pathway of recovery? In our next newsletter later this week we will answer that question.
I think the February 8, 2010 newsletter is my favorite.
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