The current practices of speech-language pathologists in providing information to clients with traumatic brain injury

Abstract

The provision of information about cognitive-communication disorders (CCDs) following traumatic brain injury (TBI) is important given the impact these communication impairments can have on the rehabilitation of people with TBI. This study describes the results of an online survey which investigated the current practices of 74 Australian speech-language pathologists (SLPs) working with adults with TBI. Thirty-seven SLPs outlined their practices in information provision. SLPs reported they provide information to adults with TBI about CCDs, the impact of CCDs on participation in life activities, and rehabilitation from CCDs. In addition, SLPs identified barriers and facilitators to information provision. Barriers identified included time, impairments resulting from TBI, and personal characteristics of the client. Facilitators included family functioning and support and the multidisciplinary team. Findings of this research indicate a need for some changes in the format and content of information that SLPs provide to adults with TBI, to ensure they can achieve fundamental levels of health literacy and better health outcomes.

Keywords::

• Traumatic brain injury (TBI)
• speech-language pathologists
• service delivery
• health literacy

Acknowledgements

This research was part of the study titled “An investigation of the current practices of speech pathologists working with adults with traumatic brain injury (TBI) in Australia”, led by Dr Anna Copley. The authors wish to thank the participants for taking part in this study. This paper is based on an honours dissertation written by the first author and supervised by the subsequent authors. The research was supported by a Charles Sturt University Honours Scholarship and Speech Pathology Australia Undergraduate Research Grant awarded to the first author.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.