A Career As A Speech-Language Pathologist

How often do passion and profession come together? For me, being a natural communicator, I have always dreamt of being part of a multi-disciplinary team, improving the lives of others in both a direct and true-to-life level. With my sincere interest in people and curiosity of the mechanisms’ of the human body, having a simple conversation with my cousin is what made me fall in love with this career.

When undergoing the professional training needed to practice as a speech-language pathologist (SLP), we pride ourselves in “achieving and maintaining the highest level of professional competence and performance (ASHA Code of Ethics, 2016).” Even with the many clinical hours needed as a graduate student and the additional hours needed as a clinical fellow (CF), there are some areas in the scope of practice of an SLP one might not gain experience in. When applying for our first jobs in our field, SLPs should feel comfortable with the potential clientele we will be working with.

Today’s speech pathologists are faced with many challenges. However, the field of speech therapy is unique in that when the speech pathologist overcomes a challenges is more often that not a significant triumph in the patients life. It is of massive importance for speech therapist have the following traits good interpersonal skills, the ability to take another’s perspective and problem solving skills.

During my interview with Speech Pathologist, Deborah Kirsch, I learned countless details about the Speech Pathology career field. When we first began talking, I learned that Mrs. Kirsch works out of a company called “Professional Therapy Services”, where she is contracted out to work for “Eunice Smith Nursing Home” which is located in Alton, Illinois. She has been working at this facility for about a year. She is a newly found graduate from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, and she graduated in May 2011. Another thing that I learned about Mrs. Kirsch is that she originally did not go to school to become a speech pathologist, this was a career that she found later in life. After she had graduated from SIUE, the first time with a bachelors in Psychiatry, she started working at a nursing home around this area. She came to know a Speech Pathologist that worked there and she quickly found the field very fascinating. She had always been driven to help others, and she witnessed some of the exercises being done with individuals at the nursing home and decided to go back to school to get her masters in Speech Pathology.

The opportunity to observe the work overview of a Speech Pathologist, has tremendously solidified my interest in this field. At the Diana Rogovin Speech Center at Brooklyn College, I observed clients of various ages with different speech language disorders including articulation, language, voice, fluency and accent modification. Observing clinicians at the speech center gave me the opportunity to learn how important client-clinician interaction is for the session and how essential it is to build a good relationship with the client. Although I learned the

There are many requirements that involve education and training, as well as personal requirements and aptitude. To be a Speech Language Pathologist, one must have a sincere interest in helping people, sensitivity, resourcefulness, and imagination. One must also be able to communicate orally and in writing. Michigan Works, an agency that assists with employment, posts jobs that display education and background requirements for obtaining a job as a Speech Language Pathologist. Some requirements include a master’s degree from a speech and hearing program certified by the ASHA, American Speech and Hearing Association, post-certification experience in an institutional setting. Home health experience is also desirable. One must graduate from high school and pass courses in biology, physics, social sciences, English, mathematics, public speaking, language, and psychology. Undergraduate courses should include a strong Arts/Science focus, linguistics, phonetics, anatomy, psychology, human development, biology, physiology, math, physical science, semantics, and social/behavioral science. To be an applicant for an SLP position, a graduate degree is required and also three hundred to three hundred seventy-five hours of clinical experience. Applicants have to pass

My intensive Speech Language Pathology coursework at California State University- Fresno has provided me with the skills to implement treatment plans, assist during speech and language assessments, and keep formal documentation of client’s progress in speech therapy. These are the necessary skills required to be an effective Speech Language Pathology Assistant and will make me as asset to have in the school speech setting.

The qualities I possess to make me a successful speech language pathologist include compassion, open-mindedness, knowing how to be a team player and how to live out the FISH philosophy which is an approach dealing with workplace issues. Compassion is important to have in order to be patient with my future clients. Throughout my college years, I served on the executive council for my sorority for two years as Vice President of Member Development. While sitting in those meetings, I learned how to be open-minded to others’ opinions on certain topics being discussed. I also had to meet with people who were having a hard time maintaining good membership status. Sitting down and talking to those individuals taught me to be objective about the individual’s circumstance and to be as fair as possible. Not only does a speech language pathologist need to be skilled in speech treatment but also with counseling the parents and loved ones of the client who feel hopeless and helpless. Being empathetic helps create a trusting relationship between the clinician, client and family. Another quality of a great speech pathologist is being able to be a team player. Most cases require the collaboration of the speech pathologist, occupational therapist, physical therapist, schoolteacher, paraprofessional, orthodontist, audiologists, and social services to

The career of speech pathology offers many opportunities in a variety of different settings. For those who are willing to tackle the challenge of advanced education and have a passion for working with others, speech pathology could be a great career choice. Through my individual research and interaction with other Speech Pathologists,

Language is beautiful and wondrous phenomenon. Not only is it a crucial component in everyday communication, but it also accentuates the culture of those that speak it. As a student pursuing a career in speech-language pathology, the aspects of communication, such as language, are the pillars of my future profession and will be deeply embedded into my daily life. There are many reasons I have chosen this path, but my childhood friend, Jasmine, can be accredited with my finishing decision to become a speech-language pathologist. When I was in elementary school, Jasmine was one of my closest friends, but I did not always get to play with her at recess because she frequently had to see an audiologist, or go to speech therapy. Jasmine had a congenital

Some of the duties of a speech pathologist are, but are not limited to, evaluate patients’ levels of speech, language, or swallowing difficulty, identify treatment options, teach patients how to make sounds and improve their voices, work with patients to develop and strengthen the muscles used to swallow, and counsel patients and families on how to cope with communication and swallowing disorders (Duties, www.bls.org, 2015). ‘If the speech-language pathologists work in medical facilities, they work with physicians and surgeons, social workers, psychologists, and other healthcare workers’ (Duties, www.bls.org, 2015).

This can be one of the most rewarding and exciting parts of the job, because the pathologist has the opportunity to see what makes individuals the way they are. Speech pathologists work with other people that are also helping the individual to create a holistic report regarding physical, mental, and emotional state. From there, the pathologist makes a plan specific to individual needs. In a clinical setting, this plan is presented to other healthcare providers and is used to write a report for insurance at a later time. In a public school setting, this plan can be presented to other staff, but is generally kept until a report is generated. The primary role of the pathologist is to work with individuals to progress and achieve skills in speech and communication that were previously impossible. Therapy is dependent on the assessment and subsequent plan, but usually involves meeting consistently with patients, using appropriate methods to overcome difficulties in communication. The final responsibility a speech pathologist has is writing reports. The type of report is dependent on what specific job the pathologist is engaged in, however, all reports are expected to be objective, professional and

Determining the most beneficial augmentative and alternative communication device is a critical component in AAC because it takes time and dedication to teach a client how to use the device as well as teach others around them how to understand. Hypothetically if a SLP were to provide wasted effort the results could have the potential to be devastating because in some circumstances all the client has is little time. Lucky enough for speech language pathologists there are models for assessment that provide guided intervention tactics. Assessment models can be described as feature matching, the participation model, and or the universal design for learning. Typically, feature matching is a quick and easy way to guide assessment because essentially

But I would think you need credentials to do this job? Some type of certification so people will know that you are trustworthy enough to treat the family members who need help. Give them the best care that they can ask for and improve their speech, language, and hearing abilities. Well, you must be licensed in your state in order to practice speech language pathology or audiology. This applies to all 50 states in the USA. But with each state there are different requirements in order to obtain this said license. Some states may be harder than others in reaching this goal. Right here in New York state, the requirements for speech language pathology and audiology are slightly different from one another. For speech language pathology, there are specific number of semester hours needed in certain courses to assure that you know what you are doing. Similarly for audiology, they are a similar requirement but with very different course to those for speech. Some of the areas for semester hours includes 12 semester hours of

If I want to become a speech therapist, I will need schooling and training, knowledge