GEN85 Support individuals with communication and interaction difficulties

Overview

This standard is about the support provided to individuals with communication and interaction difficulties to enable them to participate in learning activities and to develop relationships with others. This standard is for healthcare staff who provide support for individuals with speech and language delay, impairments or disorders; specific learning difficulties, e.g. dyslexia, dyspraxia; those who present features associated with autistic spectrum disorder; and/or those for whom language and communication difficulties are the result of permanent sensory or physical impairment including deafblindness, deafness and visual impairment. They may also apply to those who work with individuals with moderate, severe or profound learning difficulties. Users of this standard will need to ensure that practice reflects up to date information and policies. Version No 1

Knowledge and Understanding

You will need to know and understand:

1. The current European and National legislation, national guidelines, organisational policies and protocols in accordance with Clinical/Corporate Governance which affect your work practice in relation to supporting individuals with communication and interaction difficulties
2. Your responsibilities and accountability in relation to the current European and National legislation, national guidelines and local policies and protocols and Clinical/Corporate Governance
3. The duty to report any acts or omissions in care that could be detrimental to yourself, other individuals or your employer
4. The importance of working within your own sphere of competence and seeking advice when faced with situations outside your sphere of competence
5. The roles and responsibilities of others, both within and external to the organisation, who contribute to the support of individuals with communication and interaction difficulties
6. The language and communication needs of the individual(s) with whom you work
7. Any Individual Education Plans and/or Behaviour Support Plans for the individuals with whom you work.
8. The characteristics of the communication impairments and disorders of the individuals with whom you work, and their implications for social interaction and learning
9. Physical and emotional factors which impact on a individual’s ability to engage in oral communication and ways of overcoming or minimising the affects of these
10. The role of communication and self expression in developing a individual’s self-esteem
11. Strategies to enhance and promote non-verbal communication
12. The differences between normal communication and the specific or more unusual patterns of communication demonstrated by individuals with significant developmental delay, impairment or those having some form of communication or language disorder
13. The interaction between delayed language acquisition, cognitive development and sensory deficit
14. Visual and auditory teaching approaches that can enhance social/communicative interactions
15. Ways to adapt the general and technical vocabulary used by the therapist(s) in order to match the needs of individuals with communication difficulties.
16. How to use praise and constructive feedback to promote communication which is appropriate to the situation
17. The communication methods used by the individuals with whom you work, how to use these, and how to support and promote the individual’s ability to use these effectively
18. The needs of individuals where English, (or Welsh where applicable), is not the first language and aspects of culture, upbringing and home circumstances that could affect their ability to communicate with others, e.g. the different interpretations of signs and gestures

Performance Criteria

You must be able to do the following:

1. obtain accurate and up-to-date information about the individual’s language and general communicative competence
2. obtain detailed information from the therapist about the planned learning tasks and activities
3. adapt the layout of the room and the equipment used to enable individuals with communication and interaction difficulties to participate in the learning tasks and activities planned by the therapist
4. actively encourage individuals to participate in learning tasks and activities consistent with their language and communicative competence
5. use the most appropriate mode of communication, including additional visual, auditory and tactile or signing methods to reinforce spoken language
6. help individuals to make effective use of augmented and alternative means of communication as appropriate to their needs
7. give assistance to enable individuals to experience a sense of achievement and encourage independence
8. positively reinforce the individual’s efforts to participate in learning tasks and activities
9. provide feedback to the therapist on significant aspects of the individual’s participation levels and progress
10. provide opportunities for individuals with communication and interaction difficulties to initiate, respond to and maintain relationships with others
11. use appropriate strategies to encourage individuals with communication and interaction difficulties to contribute to conversations and discussions with others
12. encourage individuals with communication and interaction difficulties to respond constructively to other people’s contributions to conversations and discussions
13. provide encouragement and support to enable other individuals to respond positively to individuals with communication and interaction difficulties
14. respond to the individual’s level of expressive and receptive language to reinforce spoken language and to promote autonomy
15. help individuals to make effective use of augmented and alternative means of communication as appropriate to their needs

Additional Information

This National Occupational Standard was developed by Skills for Health. This standard links with the following dimension within the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework (October 2004): Dimension: G1 Learning and development This standard has replaced AHP23.