Visual fixation patterns to AAC displays are significantly correlated with motor selection for individuals with Down syndrome or individuals on the autism spectrum.

Eye tracking research technologies are often used to study how individuals attend visually to different types of AAC displays (e.g. visual scene displays, grid displays).

A qualitative pilot study of adult AAC users' experiences related to accessing and receiving mental health services.

There is currently limited research related to mental health supports for individuals who use AAC, particularly about the actual lived experiences of AAC users who receive mental health services. There may be alterations to mental health services for individuals who use AAC. The aim of this study was to gain the perspectives of AAC users on accessing and receiving mental health services.

Community-based COVID-19 outbreak of the B.1.1.7 (Alpha) variant of concern in Newfoundland, February to March 2021.

Background: From March 2020 to January 2021, Newfoundland and Labrador experienced 408 coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases (incidence 78 per 100,000). In February and March 2021, a community outbreak of the B.1.

Speech-Language Pathologists' Approach to Alternative Access for Augmentative and Alternative Communication for Children With Motor Impairments.

Purpose: This study examined the processes that speech-language pathologists (SLPs) use during an augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) assessment with children with motor impairments to determine alternative access solutions. These children often are the most vulnerable to a poor fit of their AAC system, which alternative access is an integral part. Although there is an abundance of information as to what types of considerations should be made during these assessments, there is no guidance as to how the assessment is completed.

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Activation During Unscripted Discourse in People With Poststroke Aphasia.

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to determine the feasibility of employing a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) task that captured activation associated with overt, unscripted (or free) discourse of people with aphasia (PWA), using a continuous scan paradigm.

Method: Seven participants (six females, ages 48-70 years) with chronic poststroke aphasia underwent two fMRI scanning sessions that included a discourse fMRI paradigm that consisted of five 1-min picture description tasks, using personally relevant photographs, interspersed with two 30-s control periods where participants looked at a fixation cross. Audio during the continuous fMRI scan was collected and marked with speaking times and coded for correct information units.

An Evidence-Based Approach to Augmentative and Alternative Communication Design for Individuals With Cortical Visual Impairment.

Purpose: This article highlights the contributions of three pillars of an evidence-based practice approach (service providers, researchers, and families/clients) in the development of a framework to offer a way forward for professionals, families, and technology companies to support optimal visual and communication outcomes of individuals with cortical visual impairment (CVI) who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). By providing available research findings as well as practical information and lived experiences, the article offers clinical considerations and design features that can lead to addressing the unique needs of these individuals.

Method: This article reviews literature concerning what is known about CVI and describes in detail and from multiple viewpoints important features required in AAC systems to support individuals with CVI and enable them to communicate effectively.

A biophysiological framework exploring factors affecting speech and swallowing in clinical populations: focus on individuals with Down syndrome.

Speech and swallowing are complex sensorimotor behaviors accomplished using shared vocal tract anatomy. Efficient swallowing and accurate speech require a coordinated interplay between multiple streams of sensory feedback and skilled motor behaviors. Due to the shared anatomy, speech and swallowing are often both impacted in individuals with various neurogenic and developmental diseases, disorders, or injuries.

Demands Associated With an Augmentative and Alternative Communication System in Relation to Alternative Forms of Access for Individuals With Motor Impairments.

Purpose: Successful adoption and use of aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) must address how to promote fluid, efficient, and organized execution of the motor behavior needed to access the AAC system. A substantial number of people who use AAC have significant motor impairments and require "alternative" access options, such as eye gaze or switch use. Such individuals may be particularly vulnerable to interference from a poorly designed system.

Supporting Access to Mental Health Services for Patients Who Use Augmentative and Alternative Communication: A Proposed Framework and Suggestions for Future Directions.

Purpose: The purpose of this review article is to examine interacting factors that affect the psychotherapeutic process for patients who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). This is examined from two perspectives: (a) how the skills and needs brought by the individual with communication disabilities influence the process of therapy and (b) how the individual's ecological systems may affect an individual's mental health and their access to mental health supports. Understanding these factors will guide future efforts aimed at ensuring that individuals with communication disorders have adequate access to services and supports for mental health.

Judicious Arrangement of Symbols on a Simulated Augmentative and Alternative Communication Display Optimizes Visual Attention by Individuals With Down Syndrome.

Purpose: Aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) displays are often designed as symmetrical row-column grids, with each square in the grid containing a symbol. To maximize vocabulary on displays, symbols are often placed close to one another, and background color cuing is used to signal/differentiate symbols across different grammatical categories. However, from a visual and developmental standpoint, these display features (close-set symbols and use of background color cues) may not be optimal.

The impact of pertussis vaccine programme changes on pertussis disease burden in Manitoba, 1992-2017-an age-period-cohort analysis.

Background: Changes to pertussis vaccination programmes can have impacts on disease burden that should be estimated independently from factors such as age- and period-related trends. We used age-period-cohort (APC) models to explore pertussis incidence in Manitoba over a 25-year period (1992-2017).

Methods: We identified all laboratory-confirmed cases of pertussis from Manitoba's Communicable Diseases Database and calculated age-standardized incidence rates.

Centering the family in their system: a framework to promote family-centered AAC services.

Families are the most significant communication partners for an individual with complex communication needs. Even though family-centered approaches are recommended to support augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) services for an individual, it is difficult to establish a successful plan that fits each individual's family. A framework for practitioners is proposed to effectively obtain and understand information about a family's unique dynamics as part of service delivery to positively impact AAC device uptake and long-term use.

Patterns and descriptors of COVID-19 testing and lab-confirmed COVID-19 incidence in Manitoba, Canada, March 2020-May 2021: A population-based study.

Background: We studied lab-confirmed COVID-19 infection (LCCI) testing, incidence, and severity.

Methods: We included all Manitoba residents and limited our severity analysis to LCCI patients. We calculated testing, incidence and vaccination rates between March 8, 2020 and June 1, 2021.

Visual Attention to Cued Targets in Simulated Aided Augmentative and Alternative Communication Displays for Individuals With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.

Purpose Many aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems require the use of an external display that is represented via a visual modality. It is critical to evaluate and understand visual-perceptual processing in individuals with disabilities who could benefit from AAC. One way to evaluate how individuals process visual materials is through research-based automated eye-tracking technologies that obtain a fine-grained stream of data concerning gaze paths of visual attention.

A multisite study of pertussis vaccine effectiveness by time since last vaccine dose from three Canadian provinces: A Canadian Immunization Research Network study.

Background: Pertussis remains poorly controlled relative to other diseases targeted by childhood vaccination programs. We combined estimates from four population-based studies of pertussis vaccine effectiveness (VE) in three Canadian provinces using a meta-analytic approach to improve precision and explore regional variation in VE and durability of protection.

Methods: Studies were conducted in Alberta, Manitoba, and Ontario over periods ranging from 1996 to 2015.

The Early Development of Emotional Competence Profile: A Means to Share Information About Emotional Status and Expression by Children With Complex Communication Needs.

Purpose This clinical focus article introduces a summary profile template, called the (EDEC-P). This profile distills information from a longer interview tool that solicits a detailed case history (the EDEC), but in a format that is readily accessible for communication partners of children with complex communication needs, including parents, educators, and other professionals. Method In this clinical focus article, we will (a) introduce the EDEC-P structure, (b) illustrate via case examples the types of information that can be shared, and (c) offer preliminary feedback from parents and other professionals on its usefulness.

Children With Cortical Visual Impairment and Complex Communication Needs: Identifying Gaps Between Needs and Current Practice.

Purpose This scoping study sought to establish a baseline for how well the needs of children with cortical visual impairment (CVI) who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) are currently aligned with the services available to them. CVI is the most common cause of visual impairment in children today, and AAC methods rely heavily on vision. Yet, the prevalence of CVI in children who use AAC methods is not yet known, and there is virtually no research concerning use of AAC with children with CVI.

Secondary attack rate of COVID-19 in household contacts in the Winnipeg Health Region, Canada.

Objectives: Understanding important transmission parameters, such as secondary attack rates, can help in strategizing, prioritizing, and planning interventions to curb morbidity and mortality due to COVID-19. Early reports suggest the risk of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 (the pathogen that causes COVID-19 disease) is high among household contacts of cases. The purpose of this analysis was to determine the household transmissibility of SARS-CoV-2 in residents of the Winnipeg Health Region.

Large community mumps outbreak in Manitoba, Canada, September 2016-December 2018.

Background: After routine mumps immunization programs were implemented in Manitoba in the 1980s, incidence was low, with 0-9 cases of disease annually. In September 2016, a mumps outbreak began in fully vaccinated university students in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Objective: We describe the investigation of this province-wide mumps outbreak, which lasted between September 2016 and December 2018.

Speech-Language pathologists' decisions when designing an aided AAC display for a compilation case study of a beginning communicator.

Purpose: The current study sought to identify decisions speech-language pathologists (SLPs) make and their rationale for those decisions when designing an AAC display for a hypothetical school-aged child who was a beginning communicator. Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) displays support communicative interactions for children who are unable to use spoken language to meet their communication needs. Children who are at the early stages of learning language, often termed beginning or emerging communicators, may rely heavily on the AAC display to support comprehension and expression.

Less than five is less than ideal: replacing the "less than 5 cell size" rule with a risk-based data disclosure protocol in a public health setting.

Setting: The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA) is one of the largest and most diverse health regions in Canada. Within the WRHA, the Population and Public Health (PPH) Surveillance Team provides epidemiological support across a variety of public health service areas.

Intervention: We developed and deployed a risk-based data disclosure protocol that balances the need to share public health surveillance data with the need to protect personal health information.

Preliminary Investigation of the Perspectives of Parents of Children With Cerebral Palsy on the Supports, Challenges, and Realities of Integrating Augmentative and Alternative Communication Into Everyday Life.

Purpose To ensure long-term adoption and use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) technologies, they must be designed to support children to participate within everyday activities and routines that are prioritized by families. The aim of this study was to gain parent perspectives on how AAC technologies were integrated into everyday life. Method Nine parents of children with cerebral palsy who used AAC technologies participated in semistructured interviews to provide their perspectives on how AAC technologies were integrated into the functional contexts of everyday life.

A nested case-control study measuring pertussis vaccine effectiveness and duration of protection in Manitoba, Canada, 1992-2015: A Canadian Immunization Research Network Study.

Background: Pertussis persists in Manitoba despite the universal availability of pertussis vaccines. Recent cases have included previously vaccinated individuals, raising concerns about declining vaccine effectiveness (VE). We measured pertussis VE and duration of protection using Manitoba's provincial immunization and communicable disease registries.