Summary of responses from PATSy presentation with Speech and Language Therapists and Psychologists

• Organiser: Julie Morris
• Undertaken on: 16/4/99
• Number of people: approx. 20

The PATSy system was demonstrated to the York Single Case Research Group, a group consisting largely of Speech & Language Therapists which meets bi-monthly to discuss issues relating to the assessment and treatment of and research into aphasia. The system was briefly explained to them and they were then given time to use the system themselves. At the end their comments on the system were sought. These are reported below.

The reaction from the group was very favourable. They liked the system and could see its benefits for training students. Some therapists (not all) thought they might use it themselves, if they were thinking about a particular research question, and/or trying to make the reading of a research paper less 'dry'.

Points noted during PATSy trial by individual users

NORMS: People liked having the information on norms available to them.

Project team's comments: It is important to note that some tests do not have norm information present (e.g. Palpa). In these cases it is usually to respect publishers' wishes that PATSy be presented in a way which still requires the user to consult the test manual.

INTERPRETATION: It was suggested that it would be useful to have an explanation or interpretation of what test results meant, especially for inexperienced therapists.

Project team's comments: We feel it is important that PATSy is not prescriptive in terms of a theoretical framework. This will allow the data to be used in a more diverse way, and will ensure the system does not rapidly become out of date. For students, PATSy is designed for use by their lecturer who can use data to illustrate something which is currently being considered within academic and/or clinical teaching. For novice therapists, this need is best met by continuing development courses, where people could teach others about diagnosis, possibly using patients on the PATSy system.

VIDEO: Longer video clips were wanted.

Project team's comments: Currently the video clips are approximately a 2 minute sequence, which is hopefully sufficient to give 'a flavour' of how the communication difficulty manifests. However, currently these may take quite a long time to load onto the screen. With future improvements in technology, it will be possible to access longer video clips more efficiently.

AVAILABILITY: When will PATSy be available for departments/groups to subscribe to?:

Project team's comments: This is currently being worked upon. The plan is that PATSy will be available by June, with information about subscription available in May.

CONSENT: If therapists wanted to contribute data in the future, what would they need to do in terms of consent?

Project team's comments: This should be discussed with a member of the project team (see the contact details below). Currently consent has been sought from all the people (or their family or carers) whose data has been represented on the system. An explanation of the system is provided and if they agree, a consent form signed.

TECHNICAL PROBLEMS: Sound files sent up a window which took up the whole screen. There were also some instances of error messages occurring.

Project team's comments: This was disappointing, but relates to the use of older web browsers and machines. Please refer to the technical requirements section for details of what is needed to run PATSy at maximum efficiency.

The group appeared to be able to use the PATSy system quickly, and were impressed by the depth of the data available. All could see its potential in student training, and some all so a use for practising therapists.

I would like to thank all members of the York Single Case Research Group for their time and enthusiasm when considering the PATSy system. Thanks also to Andy Ellis of the Department of Psychology at York University for hosting the demonstration.