An international survey of assessment and treatment practice for discourse in paediatric Acquired Brain Injury

Purpose: Guidelines recommend routine discourse assessment and treatment in paediatric acquired brain injury (ABI) but provide little guidance for clinical practice. The degree to which this has influenced the nature of discourse assessment and treatment in clinical practice has not been examined in...

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Main Authors: Hill, Lizz, Whitworth, Anne, Boyes, Mark, Claessen, Mary
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD 2023
Subjects:
Online Access:http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1173043
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/93713
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author Hill, Lizz
Whitworth, Anne
Boyes, Mark
Claessen, Mary
author_facet Hill, Lizz
Whitworth, Anne
Boyes, Mark
Claessen, Mary
author_sort Hill, Lizz
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Purpose: Guidelines recommend routine discourse assessment and treatment in paediatric acquired brain injury (ABI) but provide little guidance for clinical practice. The degree to which this has influenced the nature of discourse assessment and treatment in clinical practice has not been examined in detail. Method: Speech-language pathologists working in paediatric ABI (clients aged <18 years) in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, the USA, Canada, and the Asia Pacific region were invited to complete a survey of discourse assessment and intervention practices (n = 77). Result: Clinicians from Australia and New Zealand comprised over half of a responses (53%). The largest proportion had over 10 years’ experience (60%), worked in the metropolitan area (58%), and with secondary school-age children (64%). Routine discourse assessment was undertaken by 80% of respondents, focussing on a limited range of genres. No preferred intervention approach was identified. One-quarter of clinicians routinely considered holistic factors during clinical decision-making. Limited normative data and treatment evidence, insufficient time and training were identified as clinical barriers. Conclusion: Assessment practices were consistent with guidelines, yet interventions were highly variable, reflecting limited evidence, client heterogeneity, time constraints, and limited training. A biopsychosocial approach to practice was evident, yet a focus on impairment level factors was prominent. Findings support the need for standardised discourse assessment and discourse intervention methods. Translation into practice guidelines would promote consistency and confidence in clinical practice.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-937132023-11-27T08:19:42Z An international survey of assessment and treatment practice for discourse in paediatric Acquired Brain Injury Hill, Lizz Whitworth, Anne Boyes, Mark Claessen, Mary Science & Technology Social Sciences Life Sciences & Biomedicine Audiology & Speech-Language Pathology Linguistics Rehabilitation discourse assessment treatment TRAUMATIC BRAIN-INJURY COGNITIVE-COMMUNICATION DISORDERS NARRATIVE DISCOURSE SOCIAL-SKILLS CHILDREN ADOLESCENTS RECOMMENDATIONS REHABILITATION INTERVENTIONS CONVERSATIONS assessment discourse treatment Humans Child Surveys and Questionnaires Speech Therapy Language Therapy Communication Disorders Brain Injuries Humans Brain Injuries Communication Disorders Language Therapy Speech Therapy Child Surveys and Questionnaires Purpose: Guidelines recommend routine discourse assessment and treatment in paediatric acquired brain injury (ABI) but provide little guidance for clinical practice. The degree to which this has influenced the nature of discourse assessment and treatment in clinical practice has not been examined in detail. Method: Speech-language pathologists working in paediatric ABI (clients aged <18 years) in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, the USA, Canada, and the Asia Pacific region were invited to complete a survey of discourse assessment and intervention practices (n = 77). Result: Clinicians from Australia and New Zealand comprised over half of a responses (53%). The largest proportion had over 10 years’ experience (60%), worked in the metropolitan area (58%), and with secondary school-age children (64%). Routine discourse assessment was undertaken by 80% of respondents, focussing on a limited range of genres. No preferred intervention approach was identified. One-quarter of clinicians routinely considered holistic factors during clinical decision-making. Limited normative data and treatment evidence, insufficient time and training were identified as clinical barriers. Conclusion: Assessment practices were consistent with guidelines, yet interventions were highly variable, reflecting limited evidence, client heterogeneity, time constraints, and limited training. A biopsychosocial approach to practice was evident, yet a focus on impairment level factors was prominent. Findings support the need for standardised discourse assessment and discourse intervention methods. Translation into practice guidelines would promote consistency and confidence in clinical practice. 2023 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/93713 10.1080/17549507.2022.2079724 English http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1173043 TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD fulltext
spellingShingle Science & Technology
Social Sciences
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
Audiology & Speech-Language Pathology
Linguistics
Rehabilitation
discourse
assessment
treatment
TRAUMATIC BRAIN-INJURY
COGNITIVE-COMMUNICATION DISORDERS
NARRATIVE DISCOURSE
SOCIAL-SKILLS
CHILDREN
ADOLESCENTS
RECOMMENDATIONS
REHABILITATION
INTERVENTIONS
CONVERSATIONS
assessment
discourse
treatment
Humans
Child
Surveys and Questionnaires
Speech Therapy
Language Therapy
Communication Disorders
Brain Injuries
Humans
Brain Injuries
Communication Disorders
Language Therapy
Speech Therapy
Child
Surveys and Questionnaires
Hill, Lizz
Whitworth, Anne
Boyes, Mark
Claessen, Mary
An international survey of assessment and treatment practice for discourse in paediatric Acquired Brain Injury
title An international survey of assessment and treatment practice for discourse in paediatric Acquired Brain Injury
title_full An international survey of assessment and treatment practice for discourse in paediatric Acquired Brain Injury
title_fullStr An international survey of assessment and treatment practice for discourse in paediatric Acquired Brain Injury
title_full_unstemmed An international survey of assessment and treatment practice for discourse in paediatric Acquired Brain Injury
title_short An international survey of assessment and treatment practice for discourse in paediatric Acquired Brain Injury
title_sort international survey of assessment and treatment practice for discourse in paediatric acquired brain injury
topic Science & Technology
Social Sciences
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
Audiology & Speech-Language Pathology
Linguistics
Rehabilitation
discourse
assessment
treatment
TRAUMATIC BRAIN-INJURY
COGNITIVE-COMMUNICATION DISORDERS
NARRATIVE DISCOURSE
SOCIAL-SKILLS
CHILDREN
ADOLESCENTS
RECOMMENDATIONS
REHABILITATION
INTERVENTIONS
CONVERSATIONS
assessment
discourse
treatment
Humans
Child
Surveys and Questionnaires
Speech Therapy
Language Therapy
Communication Disorders
Brain Injuries
Humans
Brain Injuries
Communication Disorders
Language Therapy
Speech Therapy
Child
Surveys and Questionnaires
url http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1173043
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/93713