Understanding Aphasia – Perspectives from Medicine, Care and Daily Life (Podcast)
The podcast series of the Swiss Neurological Society (SNS) explores the neurological condition aphasia from multiple perspectives. Healthcare professionals, people affected and their relatives share their experiences and provide insights into diagnosis, treatment and daily life with aphasia.
Through conversations with experts and people affected, the episodes offer authentic and personal insights into a condition that profoundly impacts communication, language and quality of life.
The series highlights the importance of interprofessional collaboration and makes current developments in neurological care accessible.
Podcast I: Aphasia from a Neurological and Research Perspective
“Being unable to communicate creates major challenges. In such situations, the entire care team is often involved.” – Prof. Dr. med. Susanne Wegener
This episode explains the medical background of aphasia, including how language disorders develop, available therapies and current advances in neurological research.
Prof. Dr. med. Susanne Wegener, SNS board member, is a neurologist and has been a senior physician at the Department of Neurology at the University Hospital Zurich (USZ) since 2011 and an SNSF professor at the University of Zurich since 2017. A
Click here for the transcript of the podcast:
Podcast II: Aphasia from a Care and Speech Therapy Perspective
“At the beginning, we gather information from relatives about patients’ needs and habits. Since language no longer works, this helps us find the right way to communicate.” – Nursing expert Stephan Behr
This episode explores the role of nursing care and speech therapy in supporting people with aphasia. It highlights challenges at different stages of treatment and outlines possible improvements through therapy.
It also provides practical strategies for managing communication difficulties and emphasises the importance of close interprofessional collaboration.
Click here for the transcript of the podcast:
Podcast III: Aphasia from the Perspective of Patients and Relatives
“The most shocking thing is realising something is wrong but being unable to act. You can’t call anyone for help.” – Urs-Peter Michel, patient
In this personal episode, Urs-Peter and Verena Michel share their journey following an aphasia diagnosis. They describe the profound changes in communication, daily life and relationships.
The episode highlights the importance of support, understanding and new perspectives when living with aphasia.
Click here for the transcript of the podcast:
Links and further information
- Aphasia suisse
- Research reports on interprofessionalism in healthcare
- SAMS Charter 2.0 "Interprofessional collaboration in healthcare" (2020)
- Learning video: Interprofessional collaboration in healthcare (DE)
If you are interested in an intensive week for aphasics: Please contact s.kuehner@rehab.ch (Deputy Head of Speech Therapy at Rehab Basel).