Why Use PCO’s? Standardized testing alone tends to give a flat or incomplete picture of how someone’s function is going. In fact, studies have shown that impairment-based results are not correlated with activity and participation. In order to get a rich picture of how Activity / Participation has been impacted, a Person’s Quality of Life, Confidence, and interactions with communication partners, a non-standardized portion must be completed in the assessment.

Tools I suggest to help gain this information in an efficient way:

• -Discovering Functional Needs Packet (Setting-Specific Checklists and Activity Observations)
• -Motivational Interviewing
• –Person-Centered Outcomes

Person-Centered Outcomes are scales or questionnaires that help the SLP gain information about real-life functioning from the perspective of the patient or communication partner. Some are validated.

In my quest to offer tools that are evidence-based and provide functional, meaningful speech therapy for adults, I also recognize how important it is to have efficient ways to get this information. The following list of Person-Centered Outcomes is not exhaustive; rather, it’s a curated list from my personal recommendations for what is feasible to complete in a busy, fast-paced setting for the everyday SLP (and free to access)!