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The Aphasia Centre of Ottawa When asked about it, the first thing most people say is, “Aphasia? What is aphasia?” In one way, that may come as no surprise because aphasia is not usually considered to be a standalone condition. It commonly afflicts people who have already suffered serious trauma, such as a stroke or head injury. So in this sense it’s a secondary condition that patients suffer from due to primary trauma. But in fact, aphasia is more common than Parkinson’s disease, Cerebral Palsy or Muscular Dystrophy. It’s estimated that 1 in every 250 people in the United States alone suffer from aphasia. And no one knows more about the need for aphasia therapy in our community than Kathy Stiell, Director, Family Support at the Aphasia Centre of Ottawa. A stack of file folders on her desk is witness to that. Each folder represents a person or family, suffering from the effects of aphasia, on the Centre's waiting list. “Aphasia is such a devastating condition in so many ways”, says Kathy. “Aphasia is a communications disorder brought on by trauma such as a stroke or head injury. And it robs a person of their fundamental ability to communicate even though their intelligence and reasoning abilities are perfectly intact. So they may be able to communicate using only stilted hand gestures, broken phrases or maybe only slight body movements. Imagine how frustrating it would be to know and understand everything happening around you but not being able to react or participate in any meaningful way. Then, imagine if you’re the spouse or family member of a person suffering from aphasia. The stress aphasia can cause for both the sufferer and their family is enormous.” Funding from the OutCare Foundation was used by the Aphasia Centre to develop and adjust their therapy programs to meet the need brought on by changes in the profile of the people they serve. “We noticed we were starting to work with younger clients who had been employed at the time they were brain-injured. In fact, after conducting a survey, we discovered that 20% of the families receiving services from the Aphasia Centre consisted of two parents (average age of 47) who were raising children. So we had to adjust our staff and volunteer resources to meet the unique needs of this change in our client group.” No medicine or drugs are known to cure aphasia, as of yet. Surgery is successful in those occasions where pressure from a brain tumour or a hematoma impacts a critical speech centre. Surgery is not useful in cases of aphasia following stroke, which represent the vast majority of instances. Speech therapy is often provided to persons with aphasia, but does not guarantee a "cure". The purpose of speech therapy is to help the patient fully leverage their remaining skills so they can learn means of communicating that help their lives be as productive and fulfilling as possible. For more information about the Aphasia Centre of Ottawa, please visit www.aphasiaottawa.com. |
