Feeling excluded in financial environments: challenges and strategies to promote financial inclusion for adults with post-stroke communication disabilities
INTRODUCTION: Participating in financial environments may be challenging for people with stroke due to the communication disabilities they may experience. Understanding the experiences of adults with stroke-related communication disabilities in financial environments could help to identify strategies to improve their participation and performance. This study aimed to explore the experiences and potential challenges of people with post-stroke communication disabilities in financial environments, and introduce strategies for improving financial participation. METHOD: Four adults, three being women, from Manitoba with stroke-related speech and language disabilities participated in individual interviews for this qualitative descriptive research study. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Four themes and three subthemes were developed, highlighting that post-stroke communication disabilities often lead to financial exclusion due to external factors like institutional structures and social environments. Ableism, reflected in others' attitudes or behaviors, may have also impacted financial inclusion and participation. However, participants suggested strategies to improve financial participation and inclusion of people with stroke-related communication disabilities. CONCLUSION: This study adds to the growing area of speech-language pathology practice and research related to critical disability theory. Clinicians need to be aware that environments, including financial environments, have a key influence on the participation of people with post-stroke communication disabilities. Future studies should examine policies and practices in financial environments for people with stroke-related communication disabilities to improve their social inclusion