SmallTalkConversationalPhrases 4+

The “What have you been doing?” says “What are you doing?”. I don’t know if this is intentional, but it should say what it means

This is helpful not only for people with aphasia but also for speech impairments such as dysarthria and apraxia of speech

Aphasia is an acquired language disorder, which can occur after a brain injury such as a stroke. Lesions to different areas of the brain can result in qualitatively different impairments (i.e. difficulty expressing or comprehending language).

Psychologists who have worked with such patients know all too well the debilitating effects it can have on someone's life. Often times, the patient can understand what others are saying, but simply lack the ability to communicate through speech or writing. Several of the patients I have worked with became depressed, withdrawn and isolated after their stroke. Fortunately, certain patients can benefit from augmentative or alternative communication (ACC).

To that end, technology can sometime help patients regain some basic communication skills. I have recently reviewed this app on my blog for psychologist and refer to it as, "small, but potentially life changing tools". They allows patients to scroll through common phrases designed to facilitate communication such as, "I have aphasia, I had a stroke, I have trouble speaking, yes, no etc." Other similar similar apps include common phrases related to activities of daily living. Pictures are provided beside the text to facilitate communication if reading is difficult.