Speech Uncensored: A Speech Language Pathology Podcast

Hilary and Steve join Leigh Ann on the podcast to discuss the development of the MedConcerns app to help healthcare providers and families overcome the challenges of understanding and meeting the medical needs and concerns of people with aphasia. The app creators share about the healthcare inequality that exists for people with aphasia due to lack of widespread use of effective communication supports, and a lack of training for healthcare providers on meeting unique communication needs. They discuss how this app was designed to increase access to healthcare for people with aphasia, while also reducing the communication challenge for healthcare providers. People with aphasia have a right to equal access to healthcare, and can communicate with the right supports. The MedConcerns app embeds communication supports, making patient-provider communication easier no matter the level of training. Check out the show notes at https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/165

Dr Cath Gregory chats about the latest evidence in Functional Neurological Disorders and the speech-language pathologist’s role when working with people with Functional Neurological Communication and Swallowing Disorders. Key Takeaway: (1-2 sentences of the main theme.) Functional neurological disorder (FND) is a problem with the ‘software’ of the brain that can occur across the lifespan. No longer classed as ‘psychogenic’, this disorder is now known to follow a biopsychosocial model of illness. It is essential that a positive diagnosis, rather than a diagnosis of exclusion, occurs. Clear education about the disorder and the use of distraction to help access more autonomic pathways is the current consensus treatment for communication and swallowing disorders. A multidisciplinary approach is always required for people with more complex needs. Check out the show notes on https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/163

Carolyn and Leigh Ann catch up about outpatient life and then Carolyn deep-dives into a day in the life of a SLP working in an Outpatient Neuro setting, treating complex dysphagia associated with various diagnoses including Head and Neck Cancer, Lung Transplant Recipients. Carolyn has carved out an exciting specialty in outpatient and demonstrates how there's always opportunities for growth as clinicians through various avenues! Check out Carolyn's fantastic resources in the show notes hosted at https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/161

Ainsley Martin joins Leigh Ann on the podcast to discuss grad students and dysphagia preparedness. The majority of graduates from speech pathology graduate programs do not feel they are adequately prepared to manage dysphagia. This is often as a result of lack of clinical experience, limited educational and clinical instruction, and questionable supervision quality. Novel approaches to dysphagia education at the graduate level such as incorporating problem-based learning, providing opportunities for interprofessional education, the implementation of hands-on dysphagia labs, and partnering with clinicians in the community can help to make graduate students more competent and confident in dysphagia management. Check out Ainsley's extensive resource list in the show notes at https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/159

Hannah and Leigh Ann discuss the bad rap SNFs get. Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs) often have a negative stereotype and are considered a less prestigious setting of the Med SLP continuum of care. This artificial hierarchy of Med SLP practice limits our potential to provide high quality care in these settings if we feed into stereotypes. Just like any other Med SLP setting, there are challenges and great opportunities with plenty of room to practice at the top of your scope and provide high quality and evidenced based SLP intervention in a SNF. Hannah shares the story of how she has achieved career goals and advanced her practice skillset while working in SNFs - including starting an in-house FEES protocol and obtaining her BCS-S. Check out the show notes for more information and resources at https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/157

Dr. Allison Hilger joins Leigh Ann to talk about the origin of the Colorado Motor Speech Framework and how to use it in clinical practice. Dr. Hilger also discusses current clinical issues in motor speech and thoughts on treatment goals. The CO Motor Speech Framework can be used to guide your observations during motor speech assessment and to obtain evidence for differential diagnosis. Motor speech disorder diagnosis is important for confirming current diagnoses or providing evidence for investigating other diagnoses. SLPs can diagnose Motor Speech Disorders but not the neurological area indicated; instead, we can say that the speech is characteristic of deficits in certain neural regions. This information is important to include to inform the neurological team. Visit https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/155 to get your free copy of the Colorado Motor Speech Framework!

Allison discusses the importance of person-centered program development for folks with acquired brain injury, and empowering all clinicians to work on developing and implementing programs - it’s not just for administrators and “seasoned” clinicians! On-the-ground and ‘newer’ clinicians can do it too! Identify a gap, make a plan and work on filling it with some person-centered programs. Links, resources, and more info located at: https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/153

My guest, Stephanie Johnson, wants SLPs, future SLPs, and basically everyone to know that the end matters! Our field is uniquely positioned to advocate and support a new approach to end of life care. Communication is a key part of end of life planning. From comprehension and health literacy to expressing goals of care, connecting with loved ones, and enjoying food- SLPs can assist in all aspects. Death positivity and end of life care planning is actually life affirming. It’s a focus on what matters, what we want, how we want to spend our time and energy. It’s about living… And dying. Dig deeper with the resources provided at: https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/151

One area my guest, Tyler Roman feels speech therapy sometimes struggles is fitting into the IPR puzzle. Many patients want to focus on motor recovery and are not yet experiencing difficulties in daily tasks they were completing prior to their hospitalization. Many times CEUs/blog posts focus on the acute setting or functional cognition with home health/outpatient focus. Tyler recommends talking to your PT/OT counterparts and see where breakdowns in ADL/IADLs are occurring during therapy. Also, adapt “traditional” therapies to incorporate feedback from teammates to address breakdowns. Check out additional resources at: https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/149

Rinki wants you to know that your “one thing” may constantly change - as you, your interests, skills, and practices evolve with time. You can work towards finding and achieving your one thing with S.M.A.R.T. goal setting, focusing on one project at a time, pursuing things that feel authentic to you and align with your values, trusting your gut, and doing everything you do with grit and a growth mindset. Discovering and refining your one thing could be a lifelong process. It’s okay for everyone’s journey to look different. Success is not linear. It is sequential and exponential. Let’s continue to work towards it, one thing at a time! Dig deeper in resources provided at https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/147

The knowledge and hands-on experience you gain in graduate school is invaluable, and it is important to have a strong academic and clinical foundation as you enter the workforce. However, textbook definitions of communication disorders are not enough to provide meaningful, patient specific therapy. By incorporating techniques such as ethnographic interviewing and patient-centered care and utilizing patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs), we can discover that our patients are more than (and don’t often fit) the textbook definition. You’re going to learn so much in graduate school, but our patients aren’t textbook. They will, however, be the ones who teach you the most. Show notes with lots of awesome resources: https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/145

Childhood cancer patients are surviving longer that ever before but continue to experience chronic illness and life-altering deficits from their cancer and it’s treatment. We have to shift our focus from just helping these patients survive to helping patients thrive after cancer. Survivorship has unique implications for speech-language pathologists. Check out what Kristin has to say on this topic and be sure to look into the resources provided on https://www.speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/143

Successful clinicians working in healthcare settings possess more than just clinical knowledge and expertise; they also excel at Active Listening. Composed of a series of verbal and non-verbal actions, Active Listening is a key communication behavior that reflects engagement, establishes trust, and conveys respect and understanding. Active listening skills are essential tools for therapist-patient interactions but are also invaluable for a wide variety of professional and personal communication interactions. Check out additional resources to learn more at speechuncensored.com/podcastepisodes/141