Efficacy of the adapted Cycles approach in telepractice speech-language pathology with a parental focus for children with speech sound disorders

Purpose To evaluate the effectiveness of the adapted Cycles approach to telepractice and family engagement in the treatment of children with speech sound disorder (SSD). Methods Ten children aged 5:0 to 7:8 years with a diagnosis of SSD participated. Two multiple baseline assessments and two post-treatment assessments were conducted. Effectiveness was measured by comparing pre- and post-intervention percentage of consonants correct (PCC), percentage of consonants correct revised (PCC-R), Process Density Index (PDI), and the number of phonological processes with occurrence >25% and the intervention effect size (ES). Family perceptions of daily training were obtained via digital interview and Likert scale. Subjects were randomly distributed to G1: two weekly online sessions with the speech therapist, and G2: half the sessions conducted by the caregiver trained by the speech therapist. Both groups received 12 sessions and performed daily speech training. Results All participants showed increased PCC, PCC-R, and decreased PDI and number of phonological processes with occurrence >25%, with ES ranging from small to large. There was a trend towards statistical significance (ES G2 > G1). All caregivers reported high child interest in activities and ease of execution, with a positive family experience (Likert=4) training the child's speech using digital resources. Conclusion The effectiveness of the proposed approach ranged from medium to high. The performance of the groups was similar, with a trend towards greater effectiveness for G2, which focused on family involvement. Parental training resulted in good engagement in sessions and daily training.