Assessing the Effects of Patient Self-Rating of Voice Quality on Voice Therapy Attendance and Outcomes

Attendance and adherence are established as consistent challenges in voice therapy. Specific logistical and psychological factors linked to these challenges include the interval between evaluation and initiation of treatment and components of patient motivation. The authors propose a novel online education module involving patient self-ratings of voice quality to be completed at various time points throughout the therapeutic process, including during the waiting period between initial evaluation and first treatment session. The authors hypothesize that completion of this module will increase patient understanding of the conceptual framework of therapy, provide opportunities for inclusion of patient-driven acoustic goals and establish skills in auditory and kinesthetic awareness, which are foundational to behavioral voice therapy.

Inclusion criteria

• Age >18 years
• English-speaking
• Have access to technology, including Internet
• Diagnosed with dysphonia with a recommended treatment of voice therapy.
• Willingness to complete all clinical/research assessments
• Ability to give informed consent

Exclusion criteria

• Patients who undergo surgical intervention during the course of therapy Contraindications for participation in voice therapy
• Diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease or other neurodegenerative, progressive disorder (e.g., ALS)
• Previous training in acoustic-perceptual voice quality rating, for example a speech language pathology student
• Visual impairments that would prevent the completion of an online module.
• Those with self-reported moderate-profound hearing loss or deafness that would preclude them from participating in the study
• Inability to give informed consent