Speech pathologist Professor Leanne Togher restores communication to people who’ve suffered traumatic brain injuries.
Leanne is a communications disorder specialist at the University of Sydney’s Faculty of Health Sciences.
From very early in her career, she has worked with people suffering a sudden loss of language as the result of an acquired brain injury.
In the majority of cases, patients with aphasia are young men who’ve been in motor accidents.
Leanne’s work in the Brain Injury Unit at the Lidcombe Hospital led her to examine the way family members, friends and others can improve a patient’s ‘everyday’ communication.
She found that it’s often the ‘able’ partner in a conversation who creates blocks to understanding.