It is surprising, but also very nice, that a scientist from the University of Lodz is interested in our professional group. Every day we are a voice on the phone after dialling 999. Now we have the opportunity to tell a little more about the challenges of our work and listen to what the speech therapist tells us. The first meetings with Dr Kaźmierczak promise an interesting cooperation
– says Agnieszka Hryniewicz, Deputy Head of the Medical Dispatch Office in Lodz.
Why research among emergency medical dispatchers?
The idea to start the next stage of the research with employees of the Medical Dispatch Office in Lodz is not accidental. After the pandemic, we know perfectly well that this is a group of people who save human health and lives by establishing oral contact and perhaps a short but extremely significant relationship with the reporting individuals. My professional interest in the work of emergency medical dispatchers is also combined with personal gratitude for their daily efforts
– explains Dr Monika Kaźmierczak.
After the first working meetings with Justyna Widerska (Head of the Medical Dispatch Office in Lodz), Agnieszka Hryniewicz (Deputy Head) and Martyna Kaźmierczak (psychologist in the Medical Dispatch Office) and several emergency medical dispatchers, the University of Lodz scientist is sure that it will be a unique professional experience, but also a pleasure to meet extraordinary people. The conclusions from this research will certainly be very valuable for Dr Kaźmierczak, but also for the employees of the Dispatch Office.
Cluttering is a disorder of speech fluency characterized by too fast and/or irregular pace of speech, which is manifested, among others, by the occurrence of the so-called common disfluency of speech, incorrect use of pauses, word and sentence stresses, excessive coarticulation (pronouncing sounds with the use of speech systems appropriate for neighbouring sounds). Chaotic way of linguistic formulating of thoughts is also mentioned among the features of cluttering. Cluttered speech is not fully explored yet, and above all, it is little known outside the group of specialists.
Dr Monika Kaźmierczak from the Department of Polish Dialectology and Logopaedics at the University of Lodz is a known not only in Poland researcher and a populariser of knowledge about cluttering. Last year, she and her team conducted research among students – its results have been appreciated and won the main prize in the Best Student Paper Award competition during the 3rd World Conference on Cluttering.
Edit: Communications and PR Centre, University of Lodz
Photos: Archive of Dr Monika Kazmierczak