Research and Skills

Research period: 1 September 2020 to 30 June 2021

Speech therapy has been listed as an independent science in the Frascati directory since 2013. This fact alone requires the continuous further development and research of established knowledge. Evidence-based practice in speech and language therapy should be seen against this background. In order to be able to work in an evidence-based manner and always be up to date with the latest research, it is necessary to regularly engage with the current literature, a task that can certainly reach the limits of resources in the day-to-day work of speech and language therapists.

Speech and language therapists working in the young academic field of research-based speech and language therapy should also be offered a platform on which acute research questions can be addressed in a network. An exchange platform is necessary so that there can be contact points for specialist expertise in the many different areas of speech and language therapy.

This project is therefore intended as an opportunity to build a bridge between research and practice. The aim is to establish a platform in cooperation with the Dornstauder speech therapy practice, owned by Melanie Dornstauder, MSc, an external lecturer in speech therapy as an external cooperation partner and idea provider, on which speech therapists can quickly and specifically bring themselves up to date with the current state of research on topics relevant to them, and on the other hand, speech therapists working in research have a network and a contact point to jointly develop and work on current research questions.

The area of teletherapy in particular is closely linked to the degree programme strategy in terms of the further development of telemedicine and digitalisation. By involving students in the project to evaluate the literature in the form of assignments and bachelor's theses, teaching can benefit enormously in the long term by conveying the relevance of independent research with a direct practical relevance even before the end of the undergraduate degree programme.
The many different specialist areas in speech and language therapy will expand the research skills of all lecturers on the study programs, as the respective subject experts must also provide supervision. In the long term, this will develop the expertise required to produce high-quality recommendations for action, guidelines and systematic reviews.

• What is the evidence base for speech therapy in the form of teletherapy?
• Based on the current research situation, are there differences in the effectiveness of teletherapy for the most common speech therapy disorders?
• What late effects can be expected in acutely extubated patients after a severe course of Covid-19 with regard to voice and swallowing function?
• Does a survived Covid-19 disease have a long-term effect on breathing and voice volume?
• Can voice therapy intervention improve lung function after surviving Covid-19?
• Do the currently reported neurological consequences of Covid-19 disease have an impact on speech, language and swallowing function?

Melanie Dornstauder, MSc, BSc, owner of Logopädie Dornstauder

Active and Assisted Living

Since 1 August 2020, five interdisciplinary Research Areas have replaced existing Research Fields.