Principles of aphasia rehabilitation: a consensus between impairment and social participation approaches

Two approaches to aphasia rehabilitation have emerged in the last few decades, one that focuses on restoring language and the other that focuses on the consequences of that impairment. During two meetings in 2003 and 2005, a group of international aphasiologists from six countries evaluated the feasibility of applying a core set of principles across approaches to aphasia rehabilitation. This presentation focuses on the results of the 2005 meeting. A proposed core set of principles was vigorously debated and delegates argued whether a principle must, should or could be applied in aphasia rehabilitation. The aim of this paper is to present the consensus statements from this group together with the background arguments behind each statement