Better conversations with dysarthria pilot v.01
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Better conversations with dysarthria therapy programme: A pilot study
IRAS ID
153783
Contact name
Steven Bloch
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University College London
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Z6364106/2014/06/44, UCL data protection
Research summary
Diseases of the nervous system such as motor neurone disease and Parkinson’s disease often result in speech problems. This is called dysarthria. It can have a significant impact on how people are understood and how they take part in everyday conversation. It can also affect people's self-expression, decision-making and family relationships. Recent research has shown us how conversation is affected by dysarthria and that speech and language therapists want to offer people support but are limited in the availability of proven methods. This means they rely on assessment and treatment that focus just on areas of speech that are easy to measure such as breathing and articulation rather than conversation (e.g. being able to share news or tell stories). Overall, treatment focusing on the patient remains the norm rather than approaches involving couples or families. Recent work highlights the importance of communication partners. It suggests that conversation treatment for patients and partners in everyday settings may more useful for diseases where speech is likely to deteriorate.
We will investigate the deliverability and acceptability of a new programme called 'Better Conversations with Dysarthria'. This 6-session programme has been developed by patients and therapists to be run by therapists with families experiencing progressive dysarthria. Up to four families will take part in the research. We will carefully monitor the delivery and effects of this programme by recording what happens and asking the participants about their experiences. The result will be used to develop a rigorous study to test the programme.REC name
London - West London & GTAC Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/LO/1429
Date of REC Opinion
25 Sep 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion