At Colleton Medical Center, our speech-language pathologists (speech therapists or SLPs) work with inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation patients to help develop, rebuild, and/or maintain critical communication and swallowing skills. Several conditions, including congenital syndromes, developmental disorders, injuries or illness, can cause deficits in these skills.
Many are unaware of the large number of areas speech therapists can help their patients with, which may include:
- Speech – People with speech problems may not say sounds clearly or smoothly. This may make it difficult for others to understand them.
- Language – A person with a language disorder may have problems expressing themselves, understanding others, reading and/or writing.
- Cognition – This can involve attention, memory, problem-solving abilities, organizational skills, and judgment difficulties.
- Voice – Hoarseness, breathiness, pain, frequent coughing, and other problems with a person’s voice may result from medical problems or from overuse or misuse (certain professions — like teachers, musicians, and coaches — are at greater risk).
- Augmentative and alternative communication – People may need or choose to use other communication methods besides talking. These include no- or low-tech and high-tech options such as pointing or gesturing, using picture boards, and using speech-generating devices.
- Feeding and swallowing – Difficulties may include coughing or gagging during meals, food or liquid leaking from the mouth, or food getting stuck in the mouth or throat. These difficulties may occur due to preterm birth, developmental disabilities, medical conditions, illness and injury.
- Gender-affirming voice and communication – This area may focus on pitch, tone, vocal health and nonverbal communication.
- Communication coaching – Some SLPs help with public speaking and communication style, which may include learning another accent.