Kent and Medway Communication and Assistive Technology (KM CAT)
Contact us
Adult team
Email: acat.service@nhs.net
Telephone: 01227 864083
KM CAT (Adult Team)
Department of Medical Physics
Kent and Canterbury Hospital
Canterbury
CT1 3NG
What we do
Our Kent and Medway Communication and Assistive Technology (KM CAT) service helps people who may benefit from Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC).
Our service provides:
specialist assessment where appropriate
support and training for local therapists.
Understanding AAC
Augmentative and alternative communications (AAC) helps people who have difficulty speaking or no speech at all.
Depending on abilities there are a number of options for people who want to use AAC, including:
low-tech - these are mainly paper-based tools, such as an alphabet-chart or a symbols chart
light/mid-tech - these are generally battery operated, such as a voice amplifier for people with quiet speech, or a simple device that you can record a few messages on and then press it to ‘speak out’
high-tech - these involve specialist technology or app to aid communication.
About your appointment
Once your referral has been accepted, we will contact you and your referrer/local therapist to arrange an appointment. The assessment is a process that may take more than one session.
You will be involved in all decision making around what AAC best meets your needs.
If a suitable communication aid has been identified, this will be provided to you on a long-term loan basis.
Training will be provided to you and those supporting you.
You will be reviewed regularly to ensure you have the best AAC to meet your needs.
How to find us
Our KM CAT adult service is based at Kent and Canterbury Hospital in Canterbury.
How to access this service
If you think you may benefit from AAC, speak with your local therapist, e.g. speech and language therapist. If you are not already known to a local therapist, your GP can refer you to one.
Your therapist may then refer you to KM CAT, if they believe that your needs meet the NHS England criteria, or they may see you with our support.
Information for health professionals
If you're a health professional and looking to learn more about the support and resources we can provide or how to refer, see our KM CAT for health professionals information.