December 1, 2015
by Carole Zangari -
Doctor appointments, feeding tube placement, ear check, blood pressure, suctioning, IV medication, oxygen through a nasal cannula, trach changes, blood work No matter what the age or type of disability, almost all AAC learners face the challenge of communicating effectively during encounters with healthcare professionals. People with AAC needs are among those who are considered to be communication vulnerable and do best when there are planned supports in place. The Patient-Provider Communication (PPC) website hosts projects and resources to improve interactions between people with communication challenges and their healthcare providers. It is also the online home to a group of professionals across the globe who share information and collaborate to improve communication at physician offices, clinics, emergency rooms, acute care and rehabilitation hospitals, intensive care units, home health services, and hospice facilities. It is funded by the Central Coast Children’s Foundation and directed by AAC pioneer Dr. Sarah Blackstone and... [Read More...]
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: healthcare, patient provider communication, Sarah Blackstone
April 29, 2014
by Carole Zangari -
Looking for a way to learn more about AAC issues and have a limited budget? Be sure to check out the back issues of Augmentative Communication News (ACN) and Augmentatively Speaking (AS). AAC pioneer Sarah Blackstone wrote and published ACN, which distilled research and practice information into a quarterly publication that was both engaging and enlightening. Dr. Blackstone published ACN for 21 years (1988-2009) and has since made each of these newsletters available on her website. You can download them as PDFs here. She also collaborated with Michael Williams on the publication of AS. This was a unique newsletter in that it was written by (and for) individuals who use AAC and was published for 15 years. The back issues are available here. Both publications have information useful to clinicians, educators, families, and people who use AAC. Happy reading!
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: ACN, AS, free, Michael Williams, newsletter, Sarah Blackstone
August 1, 2012
by Carole Zangari -
Lots more ISAAC fun to tell about in Day 4! — My day started with a shorter version of the presentation on the preschool core language curriculum that I’m working on with Lori Wise. You can see the handout for that presentation here. — There is some fascinating work going on in the area in supporting the emotional development of children with AAC needs. Dr. Sarah Blackstone and colleagues talked about the developmental sequence in which emotional competence emerges. They are working on an observation and interview tool used to collect information on a child’s emotional development and the caregiver strategies. They are planning a pilot study with the tool they are developing and actively looking for volunteers to use this tool with children who are developmentally between 12 months and 10 years. – Terry Foss and and Jane Korsten did an interesting presentation called Promptology 101 where they reviewed some... [Read More...]
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: Conference, core vocabulary, Four Block, ISAAC 2012, Jane Farrall, presentations, resources, Sarah Blackstone