Acquired cognitive-linguistic impairments refer to difficulties with different areas of thinking resulting from events such as a stroke or traumatic brain injury, or as a result of a progressive neurological condition (e.g. Dementia). Deficit areas can include: 

  • Attention 
  • Perception (Visual and Auditory) 
  • Memory  
  • Reasoning and Problem-Solving 
  • Organization and Planning 
  • Insight and Awareness 
  • Social Communication 

If you or a family member are experiencing difficulty with your thinking following a neurological event, our team of speech-language pathologists can complete a formalized cognitive-linguistic evaluation to best determine the presence and type of impairment and develop an individualized treatment plan to target your specific cognitive needs.  

Cognitive-Linguistic Evaluation: What to Expect 

During your initial evaluation one of our specialized speech-language pathologists will conduct a clinical interview with you and your family/caregivers to assess your cognitive concerns. They will then complete a thorough evaluation of your cognitive-linguistic skills using appropriate standardized and functional measures to best determine your cognitive strengths and weaknesses. This information will be used to develop an individualized treatment plan. 

Cognitive-Linguistic Treatment 

Treatment of cognitive-linguistic disorders is tailored specifically to the patient’s individual impairments and cognitive-linguistic needs with the overall goal of improving functional participation and quality of life. It often includes a variety of approaches such as: 

Restorative Treatments: This approach involves direct therapy aimed at strengthening or restoring impaired skills through retraining.  

Compensatory Treatments: This approach focuses on adapting to deficits by learning new or different ways of doing things.  It focuses on the person’s strengths often through the use of internal or external aids. This can include training the use of associations or visual imagery to strengthen recall skills or incorporating the use of calendar or alarms systems.  

Communication Partner Training: As a part of this approach, caregivers, friends, and family are encouraged to help the patient use a variety of compensatory strategies to assist them in completing daily activities and functional tasks. Examples may include the use of orientation aides, memory books, or visual schedules.