Aphasia disrupts usual care: “I’m not mad, I’m not deaf” – the experiences of individuals with aphasia and family members in hospital

Figures & data

Table 1. Eligibility criteria for recruited participants.

Participants	Inclusion criteria
Individuals with aphasia	Over 18 years of age
	Diagnosis of aphasia, with some ability to read and write (self-reported)
	Experience of hospital admission post-stroke and an inpatient stay on acute and/or subacute ward and/or accessed community rehabilitation
	Can be supported to give information/opinions about their healthcare experiences
	Currently living in the community
	Sufficient hearing and vision for group interaction
	Sufficient English language skills to participate without a translator
	No evidence of progressive cognitive disorder (self-reported)
Family members	Over 18 years of age
	Sufficient hearing and vision for group interaction
	Sufficient English language skills
	No evidence of progressive cognitive disorder (self-reported)

Table 2. Demographic information of the participants with aphasia.

Participant code	Gender	Age (yrs)	Time post-stroke (months)	Aphasia severity	Aphasia type	Family member participated?
Person with aphasia_m1	Male	69	54	Mild	Anomic	No
Person with aphasia _f2	Female	63	73	Mild	Anomic	No
Person with aphasia _f3	Female	68	36	Moderate	Transcortical sensory	Husband
Person with aphasia _f4	Female	68	84	Severe	Broca’s	Husband

yrs: Years in the participant code (column 1); m: male; f: female.

Table 3. Topic guide.

Focus group questions
Warm-up question: When did you have your stroke? (data not used in analysis)
When you think back to when you had your stroke, what is your strongest memory of that time?
While you were in hospital, who did you have conversations with? Who did you not have much contact with?
What did the hospital staff do to make conversations easier or more successful?

Figure 1. Theme 1.

Figure 2. Theme 2.

Figure 3. Theme 3.

Figure 4. Themes 4a and 4b.

Figure 5. Staff are crucial to improving healthcare communication.