Working with families of persons with aphasia: a survey of Swedish speech and language pathologists

Purpose. The overall aim was to investigate how speech and language pathologists (SLPs), in Sweden are working with people with aphasia and their families and what their professional experiences are. Method. A cross-sectional study with a descriptive and comparative design. An 84-item study-specific questionnaire was sent to all Swedish SLPs, affiliated to SLOF (the Swedish professional association and trade union). Results. The response rate was 72.5% (n = 758). Thirty per cent worked with people with aphasia and typically met with their families. The participants considered the involvement of families as very important, especially concerning providing information of aphasia and training of communication strategies. However, involvement of families was limited due to a shortage of time, but also to perceived limited skill and knowledge. Conclusions. There was an evident discrepancy between what the participants claimed to be an important part of their work, and their actual practice. It is suggested that to facilitate family intervention, this should be explicitly expressed in both local and national guidelines. The content of the SLP education, and the need of further education and implementation of new knowledge into clinical practice also requires consideration.