Craniofacial Conference

2015

SLT CEN 15th April

Carole Evans

Specialist Speech and Language Therapist

South Thames Cleft Service

Introducing babble bags

• Our experience of sourcing and using babble bags

• Other teams already using these!

• What is a babble bag?

• Many thanks to Tamsin Pennington Secretary South London and Surrey Branch (and mother!)

• CLAPA

• STCS SLT team

• Helen Brookes Outreach SLT Guildford

• Ann Young Cleft Nurse

How did the idea develop?

• Awareness Week - Speech and Communication (9-17th May)

• Local CLAPA committee had heard of these bags and wanted to fund some for their area

• Families to receive a bag at palate repair post op check (9 mths)

• Funded 130 bags and they will continue to fund

• Initially discussed by a local group of parents

• Asked SLT team for suggestions

• Ordered and prepared the bags, including some items on the SLT list and others not

Next Steps

• Tamsin sent a photo to the team and asked for input into an article for CLAPA

• Concern from SLT team about 2 items (candles and straws)

• Parents had wanted these because it is significant to them when a child can blow out candles or suck from a straw

• But SLT focus/message is different

• All bags delivered to the Xmas party

CLAPA Christmas Party 2014

Contents of bag• Information sheet on CLAPA

• Activities advice sheet

• Puppet

• Book

• Bubbles

• Blow toy

• Ball

• Straws

• Small candles

Concerns

• Message re sucking/blowing activities

• Health and safety with candles

• Contained items we would not normally have recommended in our advice

• Ali Birch rewrote the info for activities

• Removed 2 items

• Started to distribute them at post op advice

What are the benefits

• Just beginning to use them

• Opportunity to work collaboratively with CLAPA and parents

• Give families further information about CLAPA

• Highlights local CLAPA group for families

• Raises the profile of SLT- articles

• Focus child in advice session

• Good prop to demonstrate activities

• Some tangible objects rather than just written advice sheets

What would we do differently?

• Tamsin suggested including cost of courier

• Closer co-ordination at the early stages

• Prototype

• Think about storage

• Gain some feedback from families before purchasing more bags- 18 month appt

• How could we make them even better?

• Welcome feedback from any other teams

What might we change in the future?

• Wait for feedback from families and SLTs

• Cardboard book- simpler content

• Maybe a cheaper puppet

• Look at cultural issues

• Should all bags be the same?

Contact details:

carole.evans@qvh.nhs.uk

01342 414296