What is a Speech-Language Pathologist?
What is a Speech-Language Pathologist?
I am constantly asked what is a speech-language pathologist or speech therapist. I usually have to pause before answering, due to all of the areas I am certified to treat. I wanted to take a moment to go through some of the major areas a speech-language pathologist or SLP works on daily.
A SLP is a professional who specializes in communication disorders. A SLP prevents, assesses, diagnoses, and treats speech, language, swallowing, cognitive-communication, and social communication disorders in children and adults.
· Speech disorders affect how someone produces sounds, speaks fluently, or uses their voice. Some of the terms used when someone has a speech disorder are articulation, stuttering (fluency), childhood apraxia of speech, and phonological processes.
· Language disorders can affect how someone understands others or how he shares thoughts, ideas, and feelings. Language disorders can be spoken or written. Some of the names of disorders associated with language are receptive language disorder, expressive language disorder, aphasia, or dyslexia.
· Feeding and swallowing disorders are related to difficulty feeding and swallowing food or liquid. Feeding disorders affect how a child sucks, chews, or swallows food. Swallowing disorders, known as dysphagia, affects how someone prepares food (chewing or sucking), swallows the food, and moves food into the stomach.
· Cognitive-Communication disorders affect how a person pays attention, plans, problem solves, organizes his thoughts, and remembers. These disorders usually occur after a traumatic brain injury, stroke, dementia, or birth.
· Social Communication disorders occurs when a person has trouble with use of verbal and nonverbal communication during social interactions. These disorders affect how someone greets others, has conversations, talks to others, and more. Social communication disorders are associated with individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and other conditions such as a traumatic brain injury.
Speech-language pathologists work in private practices, schools, hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, and daycares. Some even work in the corporate field helping professionals with speaking.
