ABSTRACT
Objective To improve communication between patients with communication disorders and their health care providers. Methods A communication training session and a communication toolkit for health care workers in long-term care facilities (L-TCFs) were used before. A control group and experimental group were used to assess the effectiveness of the communication training and a toolkit. Results and Conclusion There was little benefit to the training and toolkit. However, anecdotal observations showed there were some benefits, especially with the increased use of amplifiers for patients with hearing impairment. In addition, the L-TCF is inherent with structural obstacles to successful communication that need to be taken into account when interpreting the results. More research is needed in this area.