Aoife L Gallagher

• Doctor of Philosophy
• Academic at University of Limerick

Background Children with neurodevelopmental disabilities (NDDs) have complex therapeutic needs which require tailored models of service delivery. Objective To profile the characteristics of the optimal service for children with complex neurodevelopmental disabilities in policy and professional guidelines in addition to the empirical literature. M...

At the forefront of efforts to enhance effective communication between vulnerable persons and stakeholders within the legal system has been the introduction of the intermediary. Embedding the role of the intermediary has presented complex challenges across jurisdictions. We report on phase one of a study involving a purposive sample ( n = 60) of di...

Children and vulnerable adults can experience substantive barriers when engaging with justice systems. An intermediary is a trained professional who supports vulnerable individuals to participate fully in legal processes by facilitating communication between them and legal professionals. Challenges in the establishment of the role are evident, whil...

Purpose: To map the empirical literature with regards to narrative-based medicine interventions targeting burnout in hospital-based practitioners. Methods: A systematic search of electronic databases (n = 6) and manual searches was conducted informed by the Joanna Briggs Institute scoping review guidelines. Papers were independently screened for...

Purpose The aim of this study was to map the use of implementation science frameworks, models, and theories in intervention research targeting learning needs in the classroom. Method A scoping review was conducted. Electronic database and manual searches were conducted. Two reviewers independently completed screening, data extraction, and quality...

Background Ten percent of the school-aged population have speech, language, and communication needs (SLCN) that impact access to the curriculum. Successful implementation of classroom-based SLCN interventions can reduce barriers to learning, thereby improving educational outcomes for this vulnerable population. The challenges of implementing innova...

Background Developmental language disorder (DLD) is a condition which affects an individual's ability to use and understand language. Terminological confusion, and the use of non‐evidence‐based diagnostic criteria has impacted access to services for this population for several decades. Changes in terminology and diagnosis were proposed as part of a...

BACKGROUND: The Irish Association of Speech and Language Therapists (IASLT) has led on a series of implementation efforts since the publication of recommendations regarding terminology and diagnosis of developmental language disorder (DLD) by the CATALISE Consortium in 2017. OBJECTIVE: To explore the views of speech and language therapists (SLTs) a...

BACKGROUND: Developmental language disorder (DLD) is a difficulty learning, understanding, and using spoken language with lifelong implications for education and well-being. Teachers play a key role in the identification of DLD, in referring children to speech and language therapy services, and in the delivery of supports in school. Research sugges...

Purpose: Individuals with communication disabilities often face barriers when engaging with justice systems. Such barriers pose a material risk to the individual in relation to their right of equal access to justice. These barriers also pose a risk to the relevant State in potentially breaching Sustainable Development Goal 16 peace, justice and str...

Effective intersectoral collaboration across health and education has been a policy priority for decades as a means of meeting the needs of children with neurodevelopmental disorders in school yet remains rare in practice. A meta-ethnography was undertaken to explore the experiences of occupational therapists (OTs) and speech and language therapist...

Effective co-practice is considered a linchpin of inclusive education. Speech and language therapists (SLT), in collaboration with teachers, are amongst the professionals who have a role in ensuring inclusion for students. The challenges of collaboration are well documented, with communication considered a potential antidote. Proposals for how coll...

Much of the published research is "on" rather than "with" children and young people with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN). According to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), children's views must be considered and taken into account in all matters affecting them. In this paper, we discuss ways in which innovative quali...

Background: Understanding the factors that influence the implementation of health interventions in the context of education is essential to improving outcomes for children and young people with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN). Yet implementation considerations have not been adequately addressed when developing interventions for this...

Background: Understanding the factors that influence the implementation of health interventions in the context of education is essential to improving outcomes for children and young people with speech and language needs (SLCN). Yet implementation considerations have not been adequately addressed when developing interventions for this context. The a...

Background Many adults with childhood-onset neurodisabilities, such as those with intellectual disability or cerebral palsy, report difficulties accessing the healthcare that they require when they are no longer eligible for paediatric services. Compared to the general population, this population is at greater risk of developing many ageing-related...

Purpose The global pandemic has significantly disrupted clinical practice and health professional education. In this commentary article, we describe our experiences from the perspectives of a student, a practice educator, and a lecturer in the Republic of Ireland as we adapted to online clinical practice, teaching, and learning. We outline the chal...

Background: Participatory action research (PAR) provides an opportunity for academic researchers and adolescents to co-conduct research within an area of shared interest. Reciprocal learning occurs as co-researchers acquire research skills and knowledge, and academic researchers gain understanding of the issue being examined, from the perspective o...

Aims Healthcare systems urgently required policies to guide the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this review was to document the healthcare policies developed during the initial wave of widespread COVID-19 transmission in Ireland. We further sought to determine the key focus and impact of these policies. Methods We conducted a rapid r...

Background: Understanding the factors that influence the implementation of health interventions in the context of education is essential to improving outcomes for children and young people with speech and language needs (SLCN). Yet implementation considerations have not been adequately addressed when developing interventions for this context. The a...

Effective co-practice is considered a linchpin of inclusive education. Speech and language therapists (SLT), in collaboration with teachers, are amongst the professionals who have a role in ensuring inclusion for students. The challenges of collaboration are well documented, with communication considered a potential antidote. Proposals for how coll...

Background Population-based studies provide important data to inform policy and service planning for vulnerable children in society. The aim of this study was to characterise social and educational circumstances and self-concept among a nationally representative sample of 13 year olds with developmental disabilities in Ireland. Methods A cross-sec...

Purpose: To ascertain stakeholders’ agreement and disagreement about inter-professional collaboration (IPC) when supporting the child with a developmental language disorder (DLD) in school. Materials and methods: Two rounds of an online Delphi survey were undertaken with a purposive sample of 26 participants (researchers, practitioners and parents)...

Background Effective collaboration between speech and language therapists (SLTs) and teachers is essential in meeting the needs of children with developmental language disorders in school, but it is difficult to achieve. Currently, many children receive inadequate speech and language therapy services and/or support in school. The aim of this study...

Background Inter‐professional collaboration (IPC) has been recommended for many years as a means by which the needs of children with developmental language disorders (DLD) can be met at school. However, effective IPC remains difficult to achieve and our knowledge of how to support it is limited. A shared understanding between those involved has bee...

Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression. However, due to difficulties in communicating, children with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) are at particular risk of not being heard. Although it is recommended that children with SLCN can and should be...

Appendix S2. Background document, with the statements for round 2.

Appendix S1. Background document, with the statements for round 1.

Appendix S4. Report showing quantitative and qualitative responses to Round 1 statements.

Appendix S3. Relationship between Round 2 statements and final statements reported in Results section.

Appendix S5. Report showing quantitative and qualitative responses to Round 2 statements.

Background: Lack of agreement about criteria and terminology for children’s language difficulties affects access to services as well as hindering research and practice. We report the second phase of a study using an online Delphi method to address these issues. In the first phase, we focused on criteria for language disorder. Here we consider termi...

Background: Language and educational outcomes for adolescents with developmental language disorders (DLD) are often poor, impacting on quality of life in adulthood. Previous cohort studies show changes on measures of language and literacy which either parallel that of typically developing (TD) children at a lower level or (for vocabulary) an increa...

Delayed or impaired language development is a common developmental concern, yet there is little agreement about the criteria used to identify and classify language impairments in children. Children's language difficulties are at the interface between education, medicine and the allied professions, who may all adopt different approaches to conceptua...

Word-finding difficulties (WFDs) in children have been hypothesized to be caused at least partly by poor semantic knowledge. Therefore, improving semantic knowledge should decrease word-finding errors. Previous studies of semantic therapy for WFDs are inconclusive. To investigate the effectiveness of semantic therapy for secondary school-aged pupil...

Clinical services in the UK are increasingly delivering 'consultative' methods of intervention rather than 'direct' intensive input for children with receptive and expressive language difficulties, yet there has been little systematic evaluation of these different intervention models. To investigate the effectiveness of different models of therapy...