1 February 2024

RCSLT urges the Government to intervene to reinstate speech and language therapy for people with Primary Progressive Aphasia.

The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, Rare Dementia Support, and Dyscover have jointly urged Victoria Atkins, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, to intervene so the dedicated speech and language therapy service within the cognitive disorders clinic at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (NHNN) is reinstated.

In a joint letter to the Secretary of State, cc’ed to NHS England and University College London Hospitals, of which the NHNN is part, we have expressed our deep concern for people with Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA) and their families, across England and Wales, if the dedicated speech and language therapy service is not re-established as a matter of urgency.

Without access to speech and language therapy, people with PPA face a number of risks:

  • They face the risk of misdiagnosis.
  • They face the risk of not receiving appropriate support, as do their families.
  • They face the risk of having their human rights violated under the terms of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

We are now publishing the joint letter.

The joint letter was accompanied by a statement that the three organisations are publishing today which sets out our concerns in more detail.

Our concerns have been covered in Neuro Rehab Times.

We hope the Government, NHS England, and University College London Hospitals, will work with us to secure the future of the only dedicated, specialist service for people with PPA and their families so they and the other professionals working with them receive the support they need to live better, for longer.