title: Development and validation of Australian aphasia rehabilitation best practice statements using the RAND/UCLA appropriateness method.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To develop and validate a national set of best practice statements for use in post-stroke aphasia rehabilitation.
  
  
  METHODS
  Literature review and statement validation using the RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method (RAM).
  
  
  METHODS
  A national Community of Practice of over 250 speech pathologists, researchers, consumers and policymakers developed a framework consisting of eight areas of care in aphasia rehabilitation. This framework provided the structure for the development of a care pathway containing aphasia rehabilitation best practice statements. Nine speech pathologists with expertise in aphasia rehabilitation participated in two rounds of RAND/UCLA appropriateness ratings of the statements. Panellists consisted of researchers, service managers, clinicians and policymakers.
  
  
  METHODS
  Statements that achieved a high level of agreement and an overall median score of 7-9 on a nine-point scale were rated as 'appropriate'.
  
  
  RESULTS
  74 best practice statements were extracted from the literature and rated across eight areas of care (eg, receiving the right referrals, providing intervention). At the end of Round 1, 71 of the 74 statements were rated as appropriate, no statements were rated as inappropriate, and three statements were rated as uncertain. All 74 statements were then rated again in the face-to-face second round. 16 statements were added through splitting existing items or adding new statements. Seven statements were deleted leaving 83 statements. Agreement was reached for 82 of the final 83 statements.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This national set of 82 best practice statements across eight care areas for the rehabilitation of people with aphasia is the first to be validated by an expert panel. These statements form a crucial component of the Australian Aphasia Rehabilitation Pathway (AARP) (http://www.aphasiapathway.com.au) and provide the basis for more consistent implementation of evidence-based practice in stroke rehabilitation.
authors.affiliation: Speech Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, The University of Sydney, Lidcombe, New South Wales, Australia Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation.
authors.forename: Emma
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Power
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, the University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia.
authors.forename: Emma
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, the University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia.
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Worrall
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation Department of Human Communication Sciences, School of Allied Health, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Miranda
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rose
authors.affiliation: Speech Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, The University of Sydney, Lidcombe, New South Wales, Australia Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation.
authors.forename: Leanne
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Togher
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation Department of Cognitive Science, ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition and its Disorders, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Lyndsey
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Nickels
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation Speech Pathology, School of Psychology and Social Science, Edith Cowan University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Deborah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hersh
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation Speech Pathology, School of Psychology and Social Science, Edith Cowan University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Godecke
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation Department of Human Communication Sciences, School of Allied Health, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Robyn
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: O'Halloran
authors.affiliation: Department of Speech Pathology, Monash Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Sue
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lamont
authors.affiliation: NSW Agency for Clinical Innovation, Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Claire
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: O'Connor
authors.affiliation: Speech Pathology, Country Health SA Local Health Network, Strathalbyn, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Kim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Clarke
mesh_terms: D001037:Aphasia / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D001315:Australia; D003697:Delphi Technique; D055317:Evidence-Based Practice; D006801:Humans; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic / Q000592:standards*; D013066:Speech-Language Pathology / Q000592:standards*
keywords: aphasia; knowledge translation; quality; rehabilitation