Helena Wandin

I work as a Speech Language Therapist (SLT) at the Swedish National Center for Rett Syndrome and Related Disorders. Since 2021, I am also an associated researcher at Uppsala University. My work at the National Center allows me to combine research with clinical work, including cross professional assessments, education and developing resources that are of immediate practical use for individuals and families. I truly appreciate the chance to disseminate research, for example during recurrent courses in Rett syndrome for families and care assistants.  

Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) has been an interest of mine since I started work as an SLT a little more than 25 years ago. My research interest is communication support with a specific focus on AAC, communication partner strategies and participation. Some of the projects I’ve taken part in are:

• developing international guidelines for communication in Rett syndrome
• introducing eye-gaze devices to families in China  
• investigating interaction between individuals with multiple disabilities and their peers 

My PhD thesis was entitled “Symbol-based communication intervention for individuals with Rett syndrome: Current practices, assessment of visual attention, and communication partner strategies”. One of the studies included three adult participants and investigated the effect of an intervention package on visual attention and communication using an eye-gaze device. This is the first intervention study with a single case experimental design in which eye-gaze devices and a larger vocabulary were investigated.  

For a list of publications, please see: https://www.nationelltcenter.se/publicerad-forskning/