Speech-language therapy treatment practices for multilingual speakers with aphasia : a scoping review

Date
2021-03
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
Abstract
ENGLISH SUMMARY : The management of multilingual aphasia, a multi-layered phenomenon, is a growing and complex field in speech-language therapy. Researchers and clinicians are often faced with many challenges and questions when making clinical decisions. The decision-making process includes the following considerations: which language(s) to treat; the transfer of therapeutic benefits between the treated and untreated language(s), or not, and whether there is little or no effect in the untreated language. Despite demographic and epidemiological trends such as increased migration patterns and the linguistic diversity in South Africa (11 official languages), a comprehensive inquiry regarding clinical practices employed by speech-language therapists (SLTs) with multilingual speakers with aphasia has not been conducted yet. Given the limited clinical guidelines available for managing this clinical population, this scoping review was conducted to explore, describe, and summarise reported speech-language therapy treatment practices used with multilingual speakers with aphasia. The scoping review included two phases. Phase one was a literature review investigating international trends in the treatment of multilingual speakers with aphasia (step one to step five). This was followed by the consultation phase (step six) in the form of semi-structured interviews with five South African SLTs working with adult multilingual speakers with aphasia. Content analysis was the primary means of analysis with a quantitative approach in phase one and a qualitative approach in phase two. The scoping review revealed a range of information regarding treatment practices for multilingual speakers with aphasia. There was variability in the practices employed and broad definitions of the terminology used. The primary concern in the stakeholder consultation process was the mismatch between the linguistic diversity amongst SLTs and most of the multilingual population in South Africa. The need for including interpreters in clinical work was also noted. These findings highlight the need to develop local research that includes evidenced-based guidelines regarding treatment practices for multilingual speakers with aphasia, despite the complexity and challenge of the heterogeneous composition of South Africa.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING : Meertalige afasie is 'n verskynsel met baie fasette en die behandeling daarvan is ’n groeiende en ingewikkelde proses. Navorsers en klinici het dikwels vrae wat kliniese besluitneming kan beinvloed. Die besluitnemingsproses behels onder andere die volgende: watter taal/tale om te behandel; die oordrag van terapeutiese voordele tussen die behandelde en onbehandelde tale, al dan nie, en of daar min of geen effek in die onbehandelde taal voorkom. Ten spyte van uiteenlopende demografiese en epidemiologiese neigings, soos verhoogde migrasiepatrone en die taalkundige diversiteit (11 amptelike tale) in Suid-Afrika, is daar tot op datum nie 'n omvattende ondersoek gedoen rakende kliniese praktyke wat deur spraak-taalterapeute by die meertalige bevolking gebruik word nie. 'n Oorsigstudie is aangewend om bestaande behandelingspraktyke vir spraak-taalbehandeling wat by meertalige sprekers met afasie gebruik word, te ondersoek, te beskryf en op te som. Die oorsigstudie het twee fases ingesluit. Fase een was ’n literatuuroorsig wat internasionale tendense vir die behandeling van meertalige sprekers met afasie ondersoek het (stap een tot stap vyf), gevolg deur 'n reeks semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude (stap ses) met vyf Suid-Afrikaanse spraak-taalterapeute wat betrokke was by die rehabilitasie van volwasse meertalige sprekers met afasie. Inhoudsanalise was die primêre metode van analise met 'n kwantitatiewe benadering in fase een en 'n kwalitatiewe benadering in fase twee. Die oorsigstudie het 'n verskeidenheid aspekte aangaande die behandelingspraktyke vir meertalige sprekers met afasie aangedui met verskillende resultate, asook 'n gebrek aan gedefinieerde besonderhede. Die primêre kommer wat tydens die konsultasieproses geopper is, was die wanbalans tussen die taalkundige diversiteit onder spraak-taalterapeute en die meerderheid van die veeltalige bevolking in Suid-Afrika. Daar is ook kennis geneem van die behoefte om tolke by kliniese werk in te sluit. Hierdie bevindings beklemtoon die behoefte aan plaaslike navorsing wat bewysgebaseerde riglyne rakende behandelingspraktyke vir meertalige sprekers met afasie insluit, ondanks die kompleksiteit en uitdaging van die heterogene samestelling van Suid-Afrika.
Description
Thesis (MSL&HT)--Stellenbosch University, 2021.
Keywords
Speech therapy -- Practice, Aphasia -- Treatment -- Practice, Multilingual persons, Adulthood, UCTD
Citation