News

30 Jun
2020

Speech and language therapy apps - Top 5

Apps can be a useful addition to your Speech and Language Therapy tool kit.

Are you interested in using apps as part of your rehabilitation and treatment but not sure where to start? We can help.

Speech and Language therapists are leading the way when it comes to the use of apps clinically.

At the British Aphasiology Conference last year evidence suggested that people with aphasia really like using apps as part of their Aphasia treatment. Especially apps that are usable on their phones. It was also evidenced that Aphasia patients tend to use their phones more than Ipads.

Technology is becoming more and more part of our everyday life. As Speechies we need to encorporate it into our practice. This is sometimes easier said than done. We at Mytherappy can help.

Smart phones and tablets are now part of everyday modern day life. Patients often ask

"are there any apps that can help with my rehab?"

In fact that is how the mytherappy service started. A patient asked our therapists and we didn't know. So we found out. Our NHS specialists have now tested thousands of apps. We know what works and what doesn't. We have spend years working with mhealth and technology specialists and combining our clinical knowledge with their technology know how. This makes us truly unique. We test all apps objectively using our 50 point testing measure across our national network of NHS clinicians.

Our therapy team is made up of Speech and Language therapists, Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, our rehab support workers and of course our expert patients. Our NHS therapists work everyday with patients across Stroke, Brain Injury, Neurology, MS, Parkinsons, Occupational Health, Vocational Rehabilitation and more. This is in the hospital, outpatients and out in the community. We are proud to have a large network of testers with NHS teams and multiple universities affiliated.

Using the right app is key to success.

There are millions of apps out there. Some are great and have been created to help people. Some are there to steal data and some are just not good at what they do. As Speech and Language therapist e need to keep our patients safe and ensure they are using trusted, reliable apps.

There are a few places you can look for groups of these like:

www.my-therappy.co.uk - NHS clinicians and technology experts review health apps.

https://www.nhs.uk/apps-library/ - health apps reviewed and recommended by the NHS digital health team

https://www.orcha.co.uk/ - health apps reviewed and recommended by a comprehensive testing team with health knowledge

There are also a few tips for finding your own:

Always use apps found on reliable app stores e.g. play store

Always check how many download of the app their have been, if its in the thousands this is better

Read the reviews on the app store before recommending an app

Research the maker of the app. This should help tell you why they have made the app.

If an app is free they may be after your data. Check what data is being collected.


You can find all of our health app recommendations at

www.my-therappy.co.uk

As a quick guide we are sharing our 5 top 5's. Our top 5 recommended apps for Stroke, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy, Speech and Language Therapy and Neurological Rehabilitation. You can find them all at https://www.my-therappy.co.uk/news.

These are our best Speech and Language therapy Apps for rehabilitation and recovery,

as tried and tested by our NHS SLTs.


Cuespeak

Cuespeak has been designed by a speech and language therapist and it really is tailored for people with aphasia who want to work on specific impairments such as word-finding difficulties, reading, spelling, comprehension or sentences. It is impairment focused. For some people it can make a significant difference and help them to get reading again or feel more confident producing words.

It is free to trial and then offers in app purchases to subscribe for a set amount of time.


Get Cuespeak

Available on: Apple

Cost: Free trail

Our star rating: 4.3

Our users said: "Excellent, versatile, adaptable" Rachel SLT


Language Therapy 4-in1

Language Therapy 4-in1 is an impairment based therapy app. It is designed to rehabilitate naming, reading, writting and comprehension. This is predominantly based around single words.

Made by Tactus Therapy. A company set up by a Neurological Speech and Language therapist. Their apps are clear, easy to use and great at what they do. We highly recommend them. The tactus website is also full of useful information and tools for anyone looking to incorporate apps into their practice.

4-in-1 is their combo package although they can be bought separately for specific need of Comprehension, Naming, Reading and Writing.

You can trail lite versions of the apps for free.

We use these in all of our clinical settings from acute to community. We even lend patients tablets so that they can practice them alone or with a family member as part of their home exercise programme.

Get Language-therappy

Available on: Apple and Android

Price: Free trial or Lite version. Priced individually or as a package for full versions.

Our Rating: 4.5 Star

Our users said: "Really useful covering many aspects of impairment based therapy". Kim, SLT


Flow Free

Flow free is not a health app. It's a gaming app that our clinicians find a useful tool. The idea behind the game is you use your finger to join two connecting pipes without crossing over any existing ones. Sounds easy enough. The game gets harder as you move through the levels and the number of connections increase.

This is a simple game that appeals to adults. Used in therapy it is great for reviewing or rehabilitating concentration, problem solving, finger dexterity and as a focus for conversation therapy. Our speech therapists have found that the fun simple engagement facilitates spontaneous speech, conversation practice and lifts mood.

It can be a fun way to include family members into therapy.


Get Flow Free

Cost: Free

Available on: Apple and Android

Our star rating: 4.6

Our users said: "Great app to use for problem solving and upper limb" Jemma support worker.


Dysphagia

Great app for educational purposes. This app features animations and videos to depict normal swallowing. It also provides clear examples of varying physiologic impairments of the swallow. Video controls allow for slow motion, pause, and frame-by-frame forward and reverse. Our therapists use it to explain and demonstrate to patients and their families why someone is having a swallowing difficulty. It helps survivors understand the risk of varying from their modified diet plan.

Get Dysphagia

Available on: Apple

Cost: 9.99

Our star rating: 4 star

Our users said: " I have used this when explaining the swallow mechanism to patients, carers, students and to supplement training. I have found it extremely useful" Nicola SLT


Seeing AI

Described as "brilliant" by one of our speech and language therapists. This app reads aloud written text. It was designed by Microsoft to assist the visually impaired. Our therapists also use it as a tool for patients with acquired dyslexia following a stroke or neurological condition.

This cleaver app not only reads text from products and documents but can also read barcodes to help you know what products you are looking at. It can be programmed to recognise faces and even emotions. It really helps people see and communicate with the world around them.


Get Seeing AI

Available on: Apple

Cost: Free

Our star rating: 4 star