TY - JOUR AU - Anderson, Kate AU - Boisvert, Michelle K. AU - Doneski-Nicol, Janis AU - Gutmann, Michelle L. AU - Hall, Nerissa C. AU - Morelock, Cynthia AU - Steele, Richard AU - Cohn, Ellen R. PY - 2012/12/14 Y2 - 2024/03/29 TI - Tele-AAC Resolution JF - International Journal of Telerehabilitation JA - Int J Telerehab VL - 4 IS - 2 SE - Committee Report DO - 10.5195/ijt.2012.6106 UR - http://telerehab.pitt.edu/ojs/Telerehab/article/view/6106 SP - AB - <p><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: small;">Approximately 1.3% of all people, or about 4 million Americans, cannot rely on their natural speech to meet their daily communication needs. Telepractice offers a potentially cost-effective service delivery mechanism to provide clinical AAC services at a distance to the benefit of underserved populations in the United States and worldwide<strong>.</strong>  Tele-AAC is a unique cross-disciplinary clinical service delivery model that requires expertise in both telepractice and augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems.  The Tele-AAC Working Group of the 2012 ISAAC Research Symposium therefore drafted a resolution underscoring the importance of identifying and characterizing the unique opportunities and constraints of Tele-AAC in all aspects of service delivery. These include, but are not limited to: needs assessments; implementation planning; device/system procurement, set-up and training; quality assurance, client progress monitoring, and follow-up service delivery. </span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: small;">Tele-AAC, like other telepractice applications, requires adherence to the ASHA Code of Ethics and other policy documents, and state, federal, and international laws, as well as a competent technological infrastructure. </span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: small;">The Working Group recommends that institutions of higher education and professional organizations provide training in Tele-AAC service provision. In addition, research and development are needed to create validity measures across Tele-AAC practices (i.e., assessment, implementation, and consultation); determine the communication competence levels achieved  by Tele-AAC users; discern stakeholders’  perceptions of Tele-AAC services (e.g., acceptability and viability); maximize Tele-AAC’s capacity to engage multiple team members in AAC assessment and ongoing service; identify the limitations and barriers of Tele-AAC provision; and develop potential solutions</span><em><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: small;">.</span></em></p><p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"> </span></p> ER -