Think Tank Deliberates Future Directions for the Social Approach to Aphasia

Purpose : This article describes the rationale and outcome of an international meeting held to explore evidence related to social approaches to aphasia intervention.

Method : A think tank and conference took place in Toronto, Canada, in September 2007 with the purpose of mobilizing a process of collaboration to document and collect evidence related to social approaches to aphasia. Using a framework called “Living with Aphasia: Framework for Outcome Measurement” (A-FROM), meeting participants worked to identify evidence available in the literature related to social approaches, identify gaps in evidence, and establish a plan to move forward in the process of establishing a comprehensive evidence base.

Results : A preliminary summary of evidence was defined according to A-FROM domains, and weaknesses and gaps were identified. Concrete directions for the future were set forth as action plans.

Conclusions: This report on the outcomes of the international think tank serves as an invitation to those interested in furthering the evidence for social approaches to aphasia to become involved in a collaborative process of evaluating and collecting evidence.