Anne Maroni, Manager Service Delivery PwD has shared a story about one of our residents who lives at Astro House in Swan View.
"Meet 29-year-old Joshua who lives with cerebral palsy. Until joining Therapy Focus in 2019, Josh was non-verbal and communicated through Key Word Sign (KWS). Josh’s limited ability to use KWS meant he relied on signing one simple word at a time, like thanks or more. He would only use KWS around people he felt comfortable with, like his mum.
Once Josh joined Therapy Focus, he started using a GoTalk 9+ (a recorded speech output device). His therapists took photos of the rooms in Josh’s group home, where he lives, and added them to the device. Through this, Josh was able to demonstrate his love for communicating. He started telling people what rooms in the home he wanted to go to by combing his KWS with the images of the rooms. This was a huge step forward. 🤗
After trialling a few more devices, Josh has now been set up with an Accent 1400 with Unity. This device has more features, which is needed as Josh’s communication develops. Josh’s Speech Pathologist, Melissa, said, “Josh loves communicating now. Every time he sees his device, his face lights up! His device has developed his ability to communicate, and he now uses his KWS more consistently.”
A recent win for Josh was putting two words together to sign “more” and point on his device to “music” to express his desire for “more music”.
“It’s amazing how this device has allowed Josh to communicate his wants and needs. He has built the confidence to use other means (pointing, nodding) to communicate. It shows us that it’s never too late. Despite not having early intervention, Josh was able to learn a new communication system with the support from his mum and his therapy team,” Melissa said. 💜"
Therapy Focus Instagram Page