The Aphasia Software Finder aims to bring together onto one website all the English speaking aphasia therapy apps and software.
The Tavistock Trust for Aphasia, the only grant-making charity in the UK that focuses solely on aphasia, has commissioned this free, online resource. It’s designed for people with aphasia and their carers, as well as for Speech Pathologists and academics. People with aphasia contributed to its design. It has no links to any software suppliers or developers.
In recent years, research has come up with many ways by which the rehabilitation of aphasia can be improved. Sadly, most of these developments require volumes and intensity of treatment which are unlikely to be deliverable by traditional health services.
In this information age, many people are looking to find apps and software that can help people with aphasia plug the gap. More and more aphasia programs are coming onto the market. Knowing which to choose can be a time consuming, expensive and chancy process. Not everyone with aphasia has the same problem and it is often difficult to determine whether a given piece of software is suitable for an individual just by looking at the suppliers’ sites. This tool aims to make the search and selection process quicker, simpler and objective, and help avoid inappropriate purchases.
The website: www.aphasiasoftwarefinder.org
Aphasia Apps and Software – in this section you can search for aphasia therapy programs 3 ways:
- If you don’t know which program is right for you then you can use the Finder. When you specify the area of language difficulty you want work on, a list of available relevant treatment software programs will be given.
- Alternatively, if you know the name of the program but would like more information, you can use the alphabetical List and go straight to the program.
- Or you can use the Comparison Table.
There are two pages of description for each entry – one aimed at professionals and one at people with aphasia and their carers.
General apps and software: These programs were not designed with the person with aphasia in mind, but can be helpful in every day life for some who have aphasia or other communication problem. It is not a definitive list.
The website has a What’s New section, so that if you visit frequently you can easily see what has been added.
It also has a page listing evidence and articles related to computer therapy. The Help section has a page dedicated to other Links and Resources as well as accessibility help, a Glossary and FAQ. There are ‘help videos’ on some pages.
The Aphasia Software Finder team is committed to keeping the resource up to date.