Samtalsmatta för ökad delaktighet och kommunikation mellan personer som har Huntingtons sjukdom, närstående och tanhygienist

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine if Talking Mats® could support communication and participation for people with Huntington’s disease, carers and a dental hygienist in conversation about oral care. Eleven dyads, a person with Huntington's disease and a carer, participated. Conversations with and without mats were video recorded and compared. Each participant responded to a questionnaire about how they experienced the conversations. Analysis with Effectiveness Framework of Functional Communication showed that two participants increased their communicative effectiveness using Talking Mats®. Feelings of participation increased for all participants and were significantly higher for participants with Huntington's disease. The dental hygienist experienced that new and deeper information emerged when Talking Mats® was used and that it can serve as an aid in counseling, therapy and consultation about oral hygiene. Further research is needed to determine if Talking Mats® can support communication in other clinical activities.