Contribution of Functional Assessment and Quality of Life Assessment for Post-Stroke Individuals

In the field of Speech Language Pathology, individuals suffering a Cerebro-Vascular Accident (CVA) or stroke may be assessed with varying assessment methodologies. Two popular assessment approaches with these individuals who are suffering from an acquired/neurogenic communication disorder are determination of their functional communication level and resulting changes in quality of life. This study provides information regarding both assessment types. Its purpose was to determine the comparative contribution of functional assessment, quality of life assessment, as well as a combination of both. The relative contribution was determined through clinician opinion of reported results with each methodology. It was observed that the graduate clinicians preferred the functional assessment tool over the quality of life assessment tool for the use of treatment planning. A combination of both assessment tools was also preferred over the quality of life assessment tool