 |
Bridging The Communication Gap
Speech pathologists diagnose, treat and provide management services to people of all ages with speech or language impairments.
People seek the assistance of a speech pathologist if they have speech, language, voice, swallowing or fluency difficulties which impact on their ability to communicate effectively. The role of the speech pathologist is to assess and diagnose the communication disorder and then to develop a suitable treatment program in order to restore or improve the problem.
Improving The Three S's
Individual treatment programs may range from parent education programs (especially for those with very young children), to play-based activities (to improve speech sounds, vocabulary, or sentence structure) with children, to muscle retraining exercises to improving eating/drinking and swallowing skills.
The approach to a specific individual's communication disorder may change over time. For example, a person may acquire a communication disorder as a result of a stroke. Initially, the speech pathologist may focus on regaining specific skills, for example the production of speech sounds. Over time, however, the focus of treatment may shift to developing alternative strategies to enable the client to participate in everyday life situations. For example, a client may need to learn how to use an electronic communication aid.
As well as supporting and educating clients and their families, speech pathologists may also be involved in research involving the identification, assessment and treatment of communication disorders.
Specialties Available
There are a number of specialist areas that speech pathologists can choose from, including rehabilitation of acquired disorders, paediatrics (early childhood development, literacy development), voice therapy, and intellectual and/or physical disability.
Local speech pathologist, Karin Meyer, highlights the importance of speech pathology and why, for her, speech pathology is obviously the right career choice.
''The ability to communicate is so vital to functioning effectively within our society. Adults and children who have speech or language impairments are very disadvantaged. For this reason, I find working with people and being able to see real improvement in their ability to communicate and, therefore, their ability to relate to all people in their environments, very rewarding. It is also a very challenging career.''
A speech pathologist requires excellent communication, listening and interpersonal skills, as well as the ability to deal with complex and novel situations.
Most speech pathologists work directly with clients across a variety of settings, for example in schools, child health and day care centres, hospitals, nursing homes and community centres. Most speech pathologists work within the public sector, however, there is a growing trend towards private practice. A normal workday (from 9-5) is undertaken but, in some cases, weekend and evening work may also be required.
Looking Good
Job prospects in this field are looking positive. While continued growth is subject to government funding, the occupation is expected to grow due to a rise in the overall population, especially within the aged population sectors and an increased awareness and focus on early intervention with young children and their families.
There are good opportunitities to enter into private practice either within the traditional health and/or education sectors or the corporate sector for the more entrepreneurial. Those interested in private practice are recommended to have at least two years' experience in professional speech pathology practice.
While speech pathology is not a registered profession, employers require that potential employees are eligible to become a member of the Speech Pathology Association of Australia. Completion of an approved Bachelor of Science (Human Communication Science) or its equivalent is a basic requirement for membership.
Salaries start at $40,000 and may go to $72,500 per year with experience. Highly qualified senior pathologists may earn close to $90,000 per year.
|
