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Department of Psychiatry

Department of Psychology
 

Constraint-Induced Aphasia Therapy Clinic

 

    The Cognitive‐Communication Disorders Service at the University of Colorado School of Medicine provides an evidence-based treatment for aphasia: Constraint-Induced Aphasia Therapy (CIAT).

    CIAT is based  on research demonstrating that intensive therapy reorganizes brain function, a process referred to as neuroplasticity, and restores some important aspects of language ability. Studies of CIAT demonstrate that this treatment approach confers short-term and long-term improvements in language abilities.

    The CIAT Clinic at the University of Colorado School of Medicine is based on these studies and:

    • Provides a ten‐day course of CIAT for  three hours  per day;
    • Focuses on improving spoken language through structured therapeutic tasks;
    • Uses language “shaping” (cues provided by the speech‐language pathologist) to support successful communication;
    • Delivers treatment in a structured, face‐to‐face, real‐world context. 
Kim Frey, MS, CC-SLP, CBIS

Kim Frey, MS, CC-SLP, CBIS Service / Clinic Director

Kim Frey, MS, CCC-SLP, CBIS is an Instructor in the Neurobehavioral Disorders Program at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. She is a speech-language pathologist with over 15 years of experience providing state-of-the-art care to persons with aphasia and their families. She also has extensive experience in the study of treatments for cognitive-communication disorders, including aphasia and related neurological conditions.

Ms. Frey’s philosophy of care focuses on the treatment of persons as a whole, of which language difficulties are one important element. She also believes that effective treatment builds upon the specific goals of each patient and family.

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Recovery from aphasia is a lifelong process and one that benefits from specialized and individualized treatment. With such care, many persons with aphasia experience improvements in language abilities and quality of life.