Efficacy of Telehealth

Is speech therapy effective when delivered through videoconferencing and other telehealth methods?

Speech therapy Works believes in being up to date with research and administering researched methods of treatment only. Due to the pandemic COVID 19, many families are receiving speech therapy services through telehealth.

A team of researchers Danielle Wales, Leisa Skinner and Melanie Hayman conducted a systematic review of various research articles from databases, journals and reference lists.  The purpose was to determine if telehealth-delivered speech therapy was as effective as traditional in-person speech therapy for primary school-age children with speech and/or language difficulties. Results revealed both telehealth and in-person participants made improvements when treatment effects were measured. Findings showed there is promising evidence to support telehealth for delivering speech therapy to school-age children. It should be noted that there are limited studies available presently that have examined efficacy of speech therapy delivered to children via telehealth.

You can click below to read the study in full:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5546562/

Presently, Speech Therapy Works is providing both in-person speech therapy and speech therapy via telehealth. We use videoconferencing methods to ensure both the child and the speech therapist can see each other. We keep speech therapy interactive and creative by engaging child in interactive online activities by sharing our screens.

Below find other research articles related to telehealth

Michelle Boisvert et. al, “Telepractice in the assessment and treatment of individuals with autism spectrum disorders: A systematic review”(2010)
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/17518423.2010.499889

Sue Grogan-Johnson et. al, “A pilot study comparing the effectiveness of speech language therapy provided by telemedicine with conventional on-site therapy” (March 2, 2010)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20197354/