PhD Project, Suzanne Prior

A visit to hospital is traumatic for both a disabled patient and family members, especially when the patient has no or limited functional speech. Recent research with adults who are unable to speak in hospital has indicated that hospitalisation presents special challenges to both the families and the staff who care for the patient with moderate to profound communication impairment.

This research used technology to improve communication between adult patients with moderate to profound communication impairment and hospital staff. This was achieved through the development and evaluation of an electronic multimedia patient profile to provide hospital staff with accessible information about patients with moderate to profound communication impairments. This profile included multimedia information (such as videos, audio and text) about the ‘person behind the patient’, their medical narratives and individual care needs.

Contact: Annalu Waller, email: a.waller@dundee.ac.uk
Funder: Capability Scotland
Partners: Capability Scotland