Hey RESTORE Tribe,

We are placing the spotlight on communication for National Aphasia Awareness Month and we enlisted the help of our Sr. Directors of Clinical Success, Julie Gala and Lana Dorffer, who are both Speech Language Pathologists.

RESTORE: "Lana, tell us a little bit about what the RESTORE Communication Board means to our players and users."

Lana: "We take for granted the many nuances of language and how they impact our relationships. Our new Communication Board gives our players and users the ability to communicate with each other and build relationships."

RESTORE: "Julie, besides Aphasia, what other populations might be helped by using our Communication Board to provide quality of care?"

Julie: "There are many populations who would benefit from a Communication Board. We would take up a lot of space listing all of them, so let me share a few."

• Adults with Developmental Disabilities
• Motor Speech Deficits
• Cognitive communicative deficits
• Mechanically ventilated/tracheostomy patients
• Language Barriers/Multilingual

RESTORE: "When you say Language Barriers/Multilingual Julie, exactly how many languages will be on the Communication Board, as it launches?"

Julie: "As we launch, there are 40 languages on the Communication Board. Our users have the ability to choose their language and change their language, as needed.

RESTORE: "Lana, would you share with our readers some benefits of using a Communication Board?"

Lana: "Absolutely! Similar to Julie, if we listed all the benefits, this would be one big Blog. Let me share just a few."

• Express Needs/Preferences
• Increase Autonomy
• Facility Wide Engagement
• Positive Social Interactions
• Say 'YES' to RESTORE!

Lana: "The C-Board not only gives therapists, activities, and staff a crucial tool, but it also gives them an avenue to really get to know their residents/members. Individuals also have an opportunity to tell their family/friends they love them, when they otherwise wouldn’t have a voice."

Julie: "Deanna Prince, who is a Director of Rehab, took our C-Board for a test run and said 'I LOVE the communication board. It's so hard, in my rural SNF, to get access to technology when needed. Sometimes it takes a while and our patients may only be here for a short time.  This gives me immediate access to trial a voice output device!'"

RESTORE: "Okay ladies, time to wrap this up. Give us one last comment about the RESTORE Communication Board."

Lana: "The smiles on the faces of your residents/members are going to be so BIG, when they realize, for the first time, there is a tool to help them communicate with others. What we wouldn’t do to see those smiles first hand!"

Julie: "Please leave a comment and let us know if you have any questions or feedback about the C-Board. We are here to help!"