Lessons learnt from collaborative clinical research: Outcomes from the NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Aphasia Recovery and Rehabilitation (Aphasia CRE)

Session outline

Communication ability is fundamental to everyday functioning, and vital to engaging with healthcare services. Over 140,000 Australians live with aphasia resulting from stroke, compromising every aspect of daily life, and significantly impacting mental health, employment, social participation, and family functioning. Rehabilitation services do not currently meet the specialised needs of this group with this inequity leading to poorer and more costly healthcare outcomes. The Aphasia CRE has been funded by the NHMRC (2019-2024) to address these negative sequelae across five large multidisciplinary programs of research. In this symposium we will present progress and outcomes from our large scale national collaboration.

Learning outcomes

Workshop objectives:

1. Review and discuss results from studies investigating:
   a. predictors of recovery
   b. treatment effectiveness
   c. technology applications
   d. mental health and psychological wellbeing
   e. inclusion and accessibility.
2. Identify benefits of large scale multidisciplinary collaboration and discuss challenges in national programs of research

Target audience

• Allied health
• Medical practitioners
• Students
• Trainees
• Nursing staff