The DEAL's services are available to people of any age, with any diagnosis. 

We see many adults. 

We see people who have had communication impairments since infancy, but who have never been given an effective augmentative communication strategy. 

We see people who received communication intervention as children, who want to have their current communication strategies reviewed in the light of recent developments in communication  techniques and technology.

And we see adults with acquired disabilities, people whose speech became impaired in adulthood due to conditions such as stroke, infection, head injury and motor neurone disease.

Whatever the person's history, our goal is to assess their communication needs and to find the communication strategies which will best assist them.

Our intervention is assisted by the most generous communication aid funding program in Australia.  The Victorian government provides any adult whose speech isn't functional with an electronic communication device to the value of $6,000.  There is no waiting list, and aids which are outgrown or turn out to be inappropriate may be swapped for better options at any time.

DEAL's involvement does not cease when a device is prescribed.  We teach the communication aid user and their support team to use the new  device, after personalising its layout and programming to suit the user. 

If an electronic device is not appropriate or desired we provide low tech communication boards and books instead.  We also provide low tech books and boards for  communication aid users to use in any situations  such as beach or pool which would be hazardous for an electronic device, and to use when their electronic device needs charging or repair.