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Abstract

Background
Stroke care in the UK was significantly affected by the COVID‐19 pandemic, with many services switching to telehealth. Post‐pandemic, a UK survey of speech and language therapists (SLTs) working with people with aphasia (PWA) showed the vast majority planned to continue to use telehealth alongside in‐person intervention. Telehealth is considered a cost‐effective and feasible method of service delivery; however, there is limited evidence to support its use in the assessment of people with post‐stroke aphasia.

Aims
To investigate what barriers and facilitators SLTs experience when administering telehealth assessments to PWA and to explore SLTs’ perspectives on what makes for a positive patient experience.

Methods & Procedures
Focus groups (dyadic/triadic) were conducted via videoconferencing. Transcripts were analysed using framework analysis. Inclusion criteria for participants were SLTs working in the UK with PWA, with experience of using telehealth assessment.

Outcomes & Results
A total of 14 SLTs participated across six groups. Seven themes were identified: assessment; technology; factors specific to PWA; factors specific to family, carers and their environment; factors specific to SLTs; benefits of telehealth assessment; and what telehealth would look like in an ideal world. Facilitators to telehealth assessment included good internet connectivity, access to a helper, adapted assessments, preparation and training PWA to use telehealth platforms. Barriers included reduced control over the environment, having a cognitive impairment, aphasia severity, low beliefs in competence using technology and challenges with managing the emotional needs of PWA during telehealth assessment. A strong therapeutic relationship, offering choice and flexibility in assessment administration, promoted a positive patient experience.

Conclusions & Implications
This study provides new insights into the current use of telehealth assessment with PWA by SLTs in the UK. Barriers and facilitators identified can support the implementation of telehealth assessment in SLT services. Providing a positive patient experience when using telehealth assessment is important to SLTs, with patient choice a key factor. Further research is indicated to increase the range of standardized assessments for telehealth assessment and investigate the efficacy of a hybrid model approach to service delivery.

Publication Type:	Article
Additional Information:	© 2025 The Author(s). International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Publisher Keywords:	aphasia, assessment, qualitative research, speech–language therapy
Subjects:	R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC0321 Neuroscience. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry
Departments:	School of Health & Medical Sciences > Language & Communication Science
SWORD Depositor:	Symplectic Administrator

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