The question "What does it take to live successfully with stroke and aphasia?" was posed and answers were sought within already published accounts written by people living with aphasia. Published accounts that were identified as eligible and included in the study had to meet the following criteria: they had to be a published book or journal article that would be nationally available; they had to be authored or co-authored by a person with chronic aphasia due to stroke; and they had to be a personal narrative of some type. 28 publications meeting these criteria were identified through a search of bibliographic databases and websites, and 20 were available for analysis. 4 themes emerged. First, social support was identified as a critical factor in living successfully. Second, successful living appears to require an adaptation of one's perception of self. Third, most of the writers of the accounts looked to the future and set new goals. Finally, all of the published accounts noted the importance of taking charge of one's own continued communication improvement. Characteristics of the writers are discussed. The 4 themes are linked to the professional literature, and implications for future clinical work are explored. The potential bias of the interpreter is acknowledged.

Treatment fidelity is a measure of the reliability of the administration of an intervention in a treatment study, and has important linkages and implications for the ultimate implementation of evidence-supported interventions. In this study, we examined aphasia treatment studies published in the last 10 years for the reporting of treatment fidelity. We found that only 10% of studies over the last 10 years reported treatment fidelity, which is less than other related disciplines. We discuss the means by which we assess fidelity and recommend the consistent reporting of treatment fidelity in all treatment studies.

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