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New FREE Resource for S-LPs: The Brisbane Evidence-Based Language Test

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Credit: Southern Cross University, Brisbane AU

A FREE reliable and valid language test for speech pathologists

The Brisbane Evidence-Based Language Test (EBLT) is a free speech-language pathology resource developed in Australia and being used by health professionals around the world.

There are a variety of types of tests available within the Brisbane EBLT available for S-LPs to download online. The test version to select is at the discretion of the treating clinician based on the clinical context and patient’s ability. The assessments examine language functioning across the severity spectrum in the areas of perception, auditory comprehension, verbal expression and reading and writing, among other things.

All versions of the Brisbane EBLT have been developed using evidence-based principles and have supporting reliability and validity data.

Learn more and download the Brisbane EBLT!

 

Update on Transparent Masks Available in Canada

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A number of transparent masks are available or are being developed in Canada including, but not limited to:

For more information about transparent masks, Speech-Language & Audiology Canada (SAC) members and associates may wish to refer to Health Canada’s Guidance for Transparent Medical Mask Technical Specifications. SAC also recommends that members and associates seek infection prevention and control guidance from their employer or local public health agency about the level of protection that a specific transparent mask provides against COVID-19.

SAC will continue to provide SAC members and associates with information from Health Canada about the use of transparent masks as it becomes available.

 

S-LPs helping COVID-19 patients learn how to swallow and speak again

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Credit: CTV News

This week, CTV News published an article highlighting the crucial role of S-LPs in treating COVID-19 patients on the frontline. The article also features SAC members Avital Winer, S-LP(C), Dr. Stacey Skoretz, S-LP(C) and Sarah Jane Garland, S-LP(C).

“One of the main tools used in hospitals during the pandemic has been the ventilator, a machine that supports the breathing of those battling a severe case of COVID-19 — but after weeks or months on a ventilator, recovering patients can struggle to swallow, eat, drink or even to speak. That’s where speech-language pathologists come in, fulfilling an essential, but little-known role in the frontline response to this pandemic.”

Read the full article. 

 

March 3 is World Hearing Day!

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World Hearing Day has now passed. Watch the recording of our special World Hearing Day webinar.

World Hearing Day is an annual global advocacy event and the most extensive awareness campaign calling for action to address hearing loss and related issues. By celebrating this day, we bring additional awareness about hearing loss and the importance of ear and hearing care and enable communities worldwide to promote this important health issue as a national agenda item. This year also marks the release of the first ever World Report on Hearing.

Every year, this day addresses a specific theme. The theme of World Hearing Day 2021 is:

Hearing care for ALL!
Screen. Rehabilitate. Communicate

World Hearing Day aims to address the following:

  • Good hearing and communication are important at all stages of life.
  • Hearing loss (and related ear diseases) can be avoided through preventative actions such as: protection against loud sounds; good ear care practices and immunization.
  • Hearing loss (and related ear diseases) can be addressed when it is identified in a timely manner and appropriate care sought.
  • People at risk of hearing loss should check their hearing regularly.
  • People having hearing loss (or related ear diseases) should seek care from a health care provider.

Learn more about World Hearing Day and the World Report on Hearing.

St. Joseph’s Health Care Launches Education Toolkit for Concussion Patients

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Credit: St. Joseph’s Health Care

A concussion is a brain injury caused by a hit to the head or body that forces the brain to move back and forth inside the skull. Known as an invisible injury, a concussion can affect a person’s physical, mental, behavioral and/or emotional health. While 80% of people recover from a concussion, 20% have persistent symptoms that can develop or worsen over time. If people stop activity all together, it can delay their recovery but if they push themselves too hard, it can intensify concussion symptoms.

To help patients get back to living full lives, a health care team at St. Joseph’s Health Care London’s Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) Outpatient and Outreach Program at Parkwood Institute has developed a free online toolkit for people to use at home.

“We have several programs and services that introduces patients and their family caregivers to many of these resources, but we also know there are others in the community and across our region with concussions who could benefit from the strategies developed here at Parkwood Institute. The most exciting part about this toolkit is that it was co-designed with patients and families and made possible by generous donations from former patients and several community partners. So many people and organizations have joined together to make this happen,” says ABI Program Coordinator Saagar Walia.

The ABI Education Toolkit launched February 1, 2021 and includes programs and services to provide strategies to help patients get back to life and focus on:

  • Activity and exercise
  • Sleep
  • Hearing
  • Mental health
  • Balance
  • Vision
  • Memory and attention*

Read more about St. Joseph’s ABI Education Toolkit.

*Please note that the memory and attention section of this toolkit features SAC member Penny Welch-West, S-LP(C).

Statement of Intent – Think Tank on Hearing in Later Life

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Credit: International Federation on Ageing (IFA)

Ageing and hearing care sectors join forces to raise awareness of the link between hearing and healthy ageing, and the importance of improving access to hearing care for older adults

The International Federation on Ageing (IFA) together with leaders from the fields of audiology, or otolaryngology, psychology, dementia research, geriatric medicine, gerontology, academic, public health, government, industry and NGOs launch a Statement of Intent based on the findings from the “Think Tank on Hearing in Later Life” convened in November 2020.

The statement emphasizes five key areas of action that need to be taken to improve hearing care for older adults:

  1. Increase awareness and tackle stigma
  2. Synthesize and disseminate knowledge to change practice in the context of healthy ageing
  3. Articulate economic advantages of hearing care and elevating hearing loss as a public health concern
  4. Promote equity and access to hearing care
  5. Apply evidence to guide actions

Learn more by reading and sharing the messages from the Statement of Intent which is pertinent given the forthcoming WHO World Report on Hearing (launching March 3, 2021) and the UN Decade of Healthy Ageing (2021-2030) which aims to maximize the functional abilities of older people through the delivery of person-centered integrated health and social care within age-friendly environments.

 

Q&A on New NIHB Coverage for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Face-to-Face Equipment and Supplies

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Credit: Indigenous Services Canada’s Non-Insured Health Benefits (NIHB) Program

As of January 6, 2021, the Non-Insured Health Benefits (NIHB) Program provides coverage for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) face-to-face equipment and supplies, as well as mounting and access equipment.

Indigenous Services Canada has put together a Q&A document on the topic to help navigate this new coverage.

Read the Q&A now!

Government of Ontario Directive on Province-Wide Shutdown – Health Care and Social Services

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Businesses Permitted to Open and Sector Specific Public Health and Workplace Safety Measures

Health Care and Social Services

• Organizations and providers that deliver home care services or personal support services to seniors and persons with disabilities

• Regulated health professionals

• Professionals or organizations that provide in-person counselling services

• Organizations that provide health care including retirement homes, hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities, independent health facilities and

mental health and addictions counselling supports

• Laboratories and specimen collection centres

• Manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors and retailers of pharmaceutical products and medical supplies, including medications, medical isotopes,

vaccines and antivirals, medical devices and medical supplies

• Manufacturers, distributors and businesses that provide logistical support of or for products and/or services that support the delivery of health care

in all locations

• Organizations that provide critical personal support services in home or residential services for individuals with physical disabilities

• Organizations that support the provision of food, shelter, safety or protection, and/or social services and other necessities of life to economically

disadvantaged and other vulnerable individuals

• Businesses that are primarily engaged in the provision of health and safety training with conditions

 

CIHR funds COVID-19 Brain Study

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A research team led by Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose, professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at the University of British Columbia and a researcher at the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, has received funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research for a CLSA COVID-19 study to investigate the possible impact of COVID-19 on cognitive function, brain structure and brain function in adults aged 55 to 70 years who participate in the CLSA. Read more.

 

New SAC Info Sheet on Voice Disorders in Challenging COVID-19 Work Environments

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SAC has developed a new info sheet to highlight the increased risk of developing voice disorders in the COVID-19 workplace. We encourage our members and associates to use the info sheet to raise awareness of voice disorders and the importance of speech-language pathology and audiology services in their prevention and treatment. SAC will be sharing the info sheet with business groups and other associations.

 

NEW AND UPDATED PUBLIC HEALTH AGENCY OF CANADA (PHAC) GUIDANCE DOCUMENTS

PHAC recently released Evidence to support safe return to clinical practice by oral health professionals in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic: A report prepared for the Office of the Chief Dental Officer of Canada . This report describes the results of a comprehensive literature review about the provision of care by oral health care professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As well, PHAC  updated its Risk mitigation tool for child and youth settings operating during the COVID-19 pandemic and COVID-19 guidance for schools Kindergarten to Grade 12.

Other PHAC ethical and technical guidance on COVID-19 can be found at Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): Guidance documents.
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