Want to know how technology can help people with aphasia to read again?
You can learn more about READ-IT by watching the recording of our READ-IT Project Open Event held on September 29th 2021. It took place on Zoom, so people could join from their own living rooms. You will hear about how we ran the project and what we did in therapy. You will hear from some of the people who took part in the research and learn about our results. Our research therapists will demonstrate the technologies that we used and show how they helped.
Over half of all stroke survivors say they have reading difficulties after their stroke (Lived Experience of Stroke Report, The Stroke Association, 2019). Such difficulties have a major impact on quality of life. If you can’t read, activities like shopping, dealing with finances, and accessing the internet can become a nightmare. Reading for pleasure can be lost.
Our READ IT research project aimed to make a difference. With funding from the Sir Halley Stewart Trust (http://www.sirhalleystewart.org.uk/) and donors to City, University of London we developed a new reading therapy for people with aphasia (language problems post stroke). READ IT therapy used mainstream technologies, specifically iPads and Kindles, to help people with aphasia to reconnect with reading. We also brought therapy recipients together into a book club, so that they could share reading strategies and talk about what they read. The first phase of READ IT was conducted at City’s Roberta Williams Centre between September 2019 and February 2020. But when COVID struck we went online, showing that our therapy could also be delivered remotely. In both phases, READ IT was supported by our fantastic students of speech and language therapy.
19 people with aphasia started and completed our READ IT therapy, with resulting gains in reading confidence and enjoyment. Some of our participants told us that this was their first independent reading since their stroke and the first time since then that they had read a book.
Find out more by watching the video recording and accessing the presentation slides here.