speech therapist name meaning

What do the letters (MA, CCC-SLP) after your name mean?

M.A. is an abbreviation for master of arts. M.S. is an abbreviation for master of sciences. Both graduate degrees have been used for students of Communication Disorders depending on the university attended and the year.

C.C.C. is an abbreviation for Certificate of Clinical Competence. Speech pathologists that have passed a national exam and did a clinical fellowship year with proper accreditation from the American Speech Language and Hearing Association will have those letters after their name.

S.L.P is an abbreviation for Speech-Language Pathologist, a certification awarded by the Americah Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)

What’s in a name? Speech Pathologist, Speech Therapist, Speech-Language Pathologist …

Speech Pathologist, Speech Therapist and Speech-Language Pathologist. Is there a difference? 

We regularly field questions from families and members of the public regarding our job title  “What is the difference between a speech therapist and a speech pathologist?” or “My child sees a speech-language pathologist, is that the same as a speech pathologist?”

Simply put, there is no difference between a speech pathologist, speech therapist or speech-language pathologist.  In fact, the ONLY difference is in the name! Each one of these titles is interchangeable.  

In Australia the term speech pathologist is commonly used.  It is more common to hear the term speech therapist in the United Kingdom. In the United States, speech-language pathologist is often the preferred term.

You can know for sure that regardless of whether a therapist uses the term speech pathologist, speech-language pathologist or speech therapist (or the acronyms SP, ST or SLP!) they mean the same thing and will have the same qualifications.  

What’s in a name? What is speech pathology?  

Speech pathologists study, diagnose and treat communication disorders, including difficulties with speaking, listening, understanding language, reading, writing, social skills, stuttering and using voice.

They work with people who have difficulty communicating because of developmental delays, stroke, brain injuries, learning disability, intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, dementia and hearing loss, as well as other problems that can affect speech and language. People who experience difficulties swallowing food and drink safely can also be helped by a speech pathologist.

Why do we prefer pathologist?  

Here at Active Speech Pathology we prefer to be called speech pathologists.

Pathologist means ‘to find the causes and effects of something’. We feel this captures the essence of our role as experts in communication. We work hard to find the cause of communication difficulties and carry out the best treatment following evidence-based practice, for those same difficulties.  

If you have concerns about your child’s communication and would like to see one our Speech Pathologists, call us on 3103 0776.

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• What is the Difference Between a Speech Therapist and a Speech Pathologist?

Donald Fuller Speech-Language Pathologist

April 17, 2006.

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In a word: none. The terms "speech therapist" and "speech pathologist" have been used for years as titles for persons who work with persons having communication impairments. In the past, the term "speech pathologist" was used by professionals to describe themselves, but the term most commonly used today is "speech-language pathologist" or "SLP." Lay people have more often referred to us as "speech therapists," "speech correctionists," or even "speech teachers." These are all terms that describe the same profession, but "speech-language pathologist" is the preferred term because it captures the essence of our work (speech and language) and also signifies that we are qualified by our training and clinical experience to identify, assess, and provide remediation for pathological conditions of communication. The term "speech" is used to denote the components of vocal activity such as phonation (the production of a vocal tone via the larynx or "voice box"), articulation (the movement of the structures in the mouth to create speech sounds to produce words), resonance (the overall quality of the voice as well as the process that transforms the vocal tone into what we recognize as a person's "voice") and fluency (the timing and synchronization of these components of the complex speech act). "Language" refers to the comprehension and production of language, including the mode in which it is comprehended or produced (oral, gesturing, writing, or reading). Even the term "speech-language pathologist" doesn't quite capture the totality of our scope of practice. For example, speech-language pathologists also address the needs of persons who exhibit difficulties with cognitive functions (attention, memory, problem-solving), literacy, social interaction, and swallowing. Considering such a wide scope of practice, perhaps in the future a new term will be coined to describe who we are and what we do. Dr. Donald R. Fuller has been a speech-language pathologist for 16 years. He is Chair of the Department of Communication Disorders at Eastern Washington University, Cheney, WA. His doctorate degree was earned from Purdue University in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC).

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speech therapist

Medical Definition of speech therapist

Dictionary entries near speech therapist.

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InformedHealth.org [Internet]. Cologne, Germany: Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG); 2006-.

InformedHealth.org [Internet].

What is speech therapy.

Created: August 12, 2020 ; Next update: 2023.

Speech therapy can help people who have difficulty speaking to communicate better and to break down the barriers that result from speech impediments. The goals of speech therapy include improving pronunciation, strengthening the muscles used in speech, and learning to speak correctly.

Speech therapy can be used for a lot of different speech problems and disorders, from smaller problems like a hoarse voice up to partial loss of speech due to brain damage. Depending on the type of disorder, other medical or psychological treatments may be used as well.

• What kinds of disorders can speech therapy treat?

Speech therapy can be used to treat language disorders, speech disorders and swallowing problems.

Language disorders

A childhood language disorder can affect the child’s ability to learn to speak, to name objects and build complete sentences. Although the causes of these disorders are often not clear, the main known risk factors include hearing problems, general developmental problems and disorders affecting the development of the brain.

Language disorders in adults are almost always the result of brain injury or disease. People who have had a stroke, for example, often have trouble forming sentences or remembering words. That type of disorder is called aphasia.

Speech disorders

People with speech disorders have difficulty producing the sounds of speech, saying words clearly or talking fluently.

Children often have trouble with pronunciation, and may have a lisp or swap certain sounds for others. Speech disorders may be the result of developmental disorders, but psychological factors might also play a role. Adults with neurological diseases sometimes have speech disorders too, often making it hard to understand them.

Another group of speech disorders, known as fluency disorders, involve problems with the flow or evenness of speech. People with this sort of disorder may stutter or “clutter,” for example. When people stutter, there are often silent pauses in their speech, or they repeat or lengthen certain sounds or syllables. Cluttering is abnormally fast speech that makes the pronunciation imprecise or leaves out sounds or parts of words.

Voice disorders (dysphonia)

A voice disorder is a persistent change in someone’s voice. They might sound hoarse, strained, raspy or nearly silent. Often the voice is somewhat weak – in other words, it cracks easily or the person is not able to speak loudly. Voice disorders may arise from speaking too much or too loudly, from using the wrong breathing technique, or from problems with the voice box (larynx) like vocal nodules. Psychological causes like depression or a reaction to a distressing event can change a person’s voice too.

Trouble swallowing

In people with swallowing problems, the movements of the muscles involved in swallowing are affected. This leads to problems transporting food through the mouth and throat. The cause is often a disease or disorder of the nervous system, such as Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, dementia, an infection like Lyme disease or tetanus, or a head injury. If food gets into the lungs because of a swallowing disorder, it can lead to life-threatening complications.

What treatments are used in speech therapy?

There are various speech therapy techniques for each of the areas described above – the ones that are considered depend on the particular disorder. A long series of treatment sessions is typically needed, with each lasting 30 to 60 minutes. They may take place in a group or one-on-one.

The treatment approaches used in speech therapy include:

• Perception exercises, for example to differentiate between individual sounds and syllables
• Exercises to produce certain sounds and improve the fluency of speech
• Exercises to improve breathing, swallowing and the voice
• Help with communication using things like sign language, communication boards and computer-assisted speech
• Advice for people who need speech therapy, their parents and other loved ones
• Support in implementing these measures in everyday life

For the treatment to help over the long term, it’s often important to also regularly practice the techniques at home.

• Where is speech therapy offered?

Speech therapy is offered at the following facilities:

• Speech therapy practices
• Rehabilitative care centers
• Special needs schools
• Children's day care facilities specializing in speech therapy

Besides speech therapists, there are a number of other specialists who also use similar methods. These include breathing, speech and voice coaches.

• Do statutory health insurers cover the costs of speech therapy?

Note: The procedures and requirements for applying for and receiving speech therapy may vary according to your country. This information describes the current situation in Germany.

To have outpatient treatment at a speech therapy practice, you need a prescription from a doctor. An initial prescription will generally include up to 10 treatments, each typically lasting 30 to 60 minutes. Appointments are usually offered one to three times per week.

For the medical conditions listed above, prescribed speech therapy is often covered by statutory health insurers (apart from a fixed amount that you have to pay yourself, known as a copayment). The copayment does not have to be paid when getting a treatment that has been prescribed for children. If speech therapy is given as a part of rehabilitative care, an accident insurer or pension fund will cover the costs.

The copayment that you have to pay for yourself is 10 euros per prescription plus 10% of the treatment costs. If each treatment costs 55 euros, for example, for ten treatments you would have to pay 65 euros (the basic fee of 10 euros per prescription plus 10 x 5.50 euros).

Some speech therapists may offer certain treatments without a prescription. You then have to pay for all of the costs yourself. In Germany, these are known as individual health care services ( individuelle Gesundheitsleistungen , or IGeL for short).

The German Federal Association of Speech Therapists (DBL) has a search function for speech therapists on their website (in German).

• Bode H, Schröder H, Waltersbacher A (Ed). Heilmittel-Report 2008. Ergotherapie, Logopädie, Physiotherapie: Eine Bestandsaufnahme. Stuttgart: Schattauer; 2008.
• Deutsche Gesellschaft für Sprachheilpädagogik (DGS). Ausbildung in der Sprachheilpädagogik .
• Deutscher Bundesverband für akademische Sprachtherapie und Logopädie (dbs). Der Verband [ dbs homepage ]. 2020.
• Deutscher Bundesverband für Logopädie (dbl). Logopädie . 2020.
• Gemeinsamer Bundesausschuss (G-BA). Richtlinie über die Verordnung von Heilmitteln in der vertragsärztlichen Versorgung (Heilmittel-Richtlinie/HeilM-RL) . July 1, 2020.
• Verband der Ersatzkassen (vdek). Rahmenvertrag zwischen LOGO Deutschland und den Ersatzkassen über die Versorgung mit Leistungen der Stimm-, Sprech- und Sprachtherapie. Anlage 1: Leistungsbeschreibung . June 1, 2017.

IQWiG health information is written with the aim of helping people understand the advantages and disadvantages of the main treatment options and health care services.

Because IQWiG is a German institute, some of the information provided here is specific to the German health care system. The suitability of any of the described options in an individual case can be determined by talking to a doctor. We do not offer individual consultations.

Our information is based on the results of good-quality studies. It is written by a team of health care professionals, scientists and editors, and reviewed by external experts. You can find a detailed description of how our health information is produced and updated in our methods.

• Cite this Page InformedHealth.org [Internet]. Cologne, Germany: Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG); 2006-. What is speech therapy? 2020 Aug 12.
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Speech Therapy Terms Dictionary

 21 min read

A glossary of definitions for adult speech-language pathology & technology

Quick links: a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z.

Acquired Brain Injury (ABI)  – Any brain damage that occurs after birth, in contrast to genetic brain disorders or damage to the brain in the womb or during birth. Typically refers to head injury, stroke, brain tumors, and lack of oxygen to the brain, but excludes degenerative brain conditions, such as dementia. Find out  more about brain injury  on our  Brain Injury Resources page.

Acquired Communication Disorder  – A problem with speech, language, voice, pragmatics, or fluency that develops after a person has developed language. Contrasted with a  developmental  communication disorder. Typically refers to aphasia, dysarthria, apraxia of speech, cognitive-communication disorders that occur after an acquired brain injury.  Learn the difference  between these types of communication disorders.

Alphabet Supplementation  – A technique of pointing to the first letter of each word as it is said. Use the letter board in  AlphaTopics AAC  to practice alphabet (and topic) supplementation to improve speech intelligibility for people with dysarthria. Learn  10 ways alphabet supplementation can help .

Alveolar  – A class of sounds made when the tongue touches or is close to the bumpy front part of the roof of the mouth, called the alveolar ridge. English alveolar consonants include /n, t, d, s, z, ch, l, r/.

Alzheimer’s Disease  – The most common type of dementia, often recognized by declining short-term memory in the early stages. Like all dementias, people with Alzheimer’s get worse over time as it is a degenerative condition.  Spaced Retrieval Therapy  is an app designed to be used during therapy with people with Alzheimer’s Disease to help with memory of specific facts and procedures.

Android  – A mobile operating system developed by Google, run by several brands of smartphones and tablet computers such as Nexus, Samsung, Kindle, LG, Sony, and Motorola. Apps are sold on the  Google Play store . Apps for Android devices are not compatible with Apple devices (iPad, iPhone) running iOS. Most of Tactus Therapy’s most popular apps are now available for Android on Google Play.

Anomia  – An expressive language impairment that makes it difficult to recall words and names. Anomia is a common and frustrating part of most types of aphasia. Anomic aphasia is a specific subtype of aphasia with anomia as the primary symptom.  Naming Therapy  and  Advanced Naming Therapy  are apps designed to work on improving word retrieval for people with anomia.

Aphasia  – An acquired language disorder caused by damage to the language centers of the brain. Aphasia can impact auditory comprehension, verbal expression, reading, writing, and use of symbols. It does not affect intelligence. Read  “What is Aphasia?”  for more information.

App  – Short for “software application.” An app requires an operating system to run on. In mobile devices, an app can be downloaded from an app store and launched by touching the icon. See all the Tactus Therapy apps on this  list .

App Store  – An online store that sells apps for Apple devices running iOS. The App Store is part of iTunes on a computer, or can be found as an app pre-installed on an iPad or iPhone. All Tactus Therapy apps for Apple devices are purchased directly through the  App Store , not through our website.

Apraxia of Speech (AOS)  – An acquired motor speech disorder that impairs the ability to form and execute the motor plans for speech. Read  “What is Apraxia?”  for more information.  Speech FlipBook  is an app designed to help with apraxia of speech by presenting sounds in a hierarchy of complexity.  Apraxia Therapy  is an app to help people with AOS speak in time with a video.

Articulation  – The movement of the tongue, lips, and jaw to make speech sounds. Articulation is one part of the whole speech process that includes respiration, phonation, articulation, resonance, and prosody. Articulation problems are common after a stroke or brain injury as part of dysarthria.  Speech FilpBook  is our app for articulation.

ASHA  – The  American Speech-Language-Hearing Association  is the organization that certifies Speech-Language Pathologists in the United States. The annual ASHA convention is held every year in November in various locations around the country, featuring continuing education and an exhibit hall  for 10,000-14,000 attending speech pathologists, audiologists, and students.

Assessment  – The evaluation phase of therapy in which a speech therapist determines whether an impairment exists, the degree and nature of the impairment, and sets the direction for therapy, usually with a written report summarizing the findings. Assessments may include formal or standardized tests or may be informal, consisting of an interview or a variety of non-standardized tasks. Many assessments include a combination of formal and informal measures.

Attention  – A cognitive process of allocating processing resources to certain information. Attention is addressed in a hierarchy of focused, sustained, selective, and alternating. Attention is required for memory, and is frequently impaired after brain injury.  Visual Attention Therapy  is an app designed to work on attention to both sides of personal space.

Auditory Comprehension  – Understanding words through listening. Auditory comprehension is often impaired in aphasia. It can be relatively in-tact for single words or simple sentences, but impaired for complex sentences, grammatical words, or when there are background distractions.  Comprehension Therapy  is an app that addresses auditory comprehension of single words, and Advanced Comprehension Therapy addresses auditory comprehension of sentences and directions.

Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)  – Communication methods used by a person with a communication disorder. to enhance or replace spoken or written communication. AAC can be  unaided  or  aided  by a device or communication tool, and can be  low-tech  (paper or equivalent) or  high-tech  (computer, smartphone, or dedicated device).  AlphaTopics  is an AAC app for dysarthria and aphasia.

Autism (ASD)  – A neurodevelopmental disorder that often involves impaired social interaction, decreased communication skills, and repetitive behaviors. Read why Tactus Therapy apps work well for  children with autism .

Bilabial  – A class of sounds made with both lips. In English, the bilabial consonant sounds are /m, b, p/.

Brain Injury  – See also  Acquired Brain Injury  or  Traumatic Brain Injury . Learn more about the types of brain injuries and what to expect in “ What is Brain Injury? ”

Broca’s Aphasia  – See also  Expressive Aphasia .  Language Therapy  is an app developed for people with Broca’s aphasia to improve naming, listening, reading, and writing skills.  See a video of a man with Broca’s aphasia here.

Bundle  – An app bundle is a set of paid apps that can be purchased together on the App Store at a discount over buying each app separately. Tactus Therapy offers three  app bundles  to save you money: Tactus Aphasia Essentials, Tactus Aphasia Elements, & Tactus Clinical Tools.  Learn more  about how you can save when you stock up on great apps for therapy.

Caregiver  – A person who provides care for a person with a disability. A caregiver can be a spouse, sibling, parent, or friend as well as a paid caregiver hired to care for a person. Also called a carer or care partner.

Category  – A class of things sharing a similar attribute. Read more about the  Importance of Categories  in speech therapy.  Category Therapy  is an app designed to work on understanding and organizing categories.

Cerebrovascular Accident (CVA)  – The medical term for a stroke. A stroke occurs when the blood supply to the brain is blocked (ischemic stroke) or ruptures (hemorrhagic). Read  What is a Stroke?  for more information or find  resources for stroke .

Circumlocution  – Literally talking around a word, a method of describing a concept. Circumlocution is a  strategy  used by people with anomia, as well as a common characteristic of aphasic speech.  This approach is used in  Naming Therapy  in the  Describe  activity. See also Semantic Feature Analysis.

Cognition  – The mental processes related to knowledge, including awareness, attention, perception, reasoning, memory, language, and judgement.

Cognitive-Communication  – Cognition as it relates to communication. Disorders of cognition often have a negative effect on communication. Read more about  cognitive-communication disorders  and see how  apps can help treat cognitive-communication .

Communication  – The transmission of  a message from a sender to a recipient through a medium (e.g. verbal, non-verbal, written).

Communication Disorder  – Any disorder that impairs communication. Communication disorders may affect speech (speech-sound disorder, articulation disorder, motor speech disorder, apraxia of speech), language (aphasia, expressive language disorder), pragmatics (autism, frontal head injury), fluency (stuttering), literacy (dyslexia, agraphia, alexia), cognition (dyscalculia, dementia),  or voice. Learn more about  communication disorders acquired after stroke .

Compensatory Strategy  – A method of carrying out a task when the easiest or most direct method of achieving the goal is impaired. Example: Describing a word is a compensatory  word-finding strategy  that can be used when a person cannot think of the exact word; using this strategy may result in the listener guessing the word, thereby compensating for the word finding deficit. A person must remember to use the strategy for it to work. Compensatory strategies used for cognition, language, speech, and swallowing and are frequently taught in speech therapy.

Comprehension  – Understanding. Auditory comprehension is understanding through listening. Reading comprehension is understanding written words.  Comprehension Therapy  is an app designed to work on auditory and reading comprehension of single words.  Reading Therapy  is an app meant to be used for reading comprehension at the phrase and sentence levels. Advanced Language Therapy contains both Advanced Comprehension Therapy for working on understanding sentences, and Advanced Reading Therapy for working on understanding paragraphs.

Confrontation Naming  – Saying the name of an object that is presented. Objects may be real or pictured. This ability is frequently impaired in aphasia and dementia.  Naming Therapy  is an app designed to practice confrontation naming.

Consonant  – A speech sound in which the air is partially obstructed. Consonants combine with vowels to make syllables or with other consonants to form clusters. All of the consonants and most clusters in English are featured in  Speech FlipBook .

Convergent Naming  – Stating the category that certain words have in common. Given “apple, banana, pomegranate,” the category is “fruit.” Categories may be concrete or abstract.  Category Therapy  is an app that works on convergent naming of categories in the  Classify  and  Add One  activities.

Conversation  – The exchange of ideas through language. The end goal of speech therapy in many cases.  Conversation Therapy  is an app designed to encourage conversation in therapy.

Cue  – An auditory, visual, or tactile message that prompts a person to say or do something. Cues are given in speech therapy to help a person find a word, produce a sound, remember something, or use a compensatory strategy. Also referred to as a hint or prompt, and included in  Language  Therapy and Number Therapy .

Cueing Hierarchy  – A set of cues arranged in an order from most helpful to least helpful. The cues in  Naming Therapy  in the  Practice  mode and  Number Therapy  in the  Speak  activity form a cueing hierarchy for word retrieval. Learn more about  how to use a cueing hierarchy .

Customization  – Adapting something to personal preference or needs. In apps, this can be achieved by changing settings to make the app work in a custom way, or through adding your own words, pictures, or exercises to make the app personally relevant.  Language Therapy and  AlphaTopics  are highly customizable apps, allowing you to add own words, questions, and pictures.

Degenerative Disease  – A medical condition that gets worse, or progresses, over time. Often speech therapy for people with degenerative disorders will focus on teaching strategies that can be used by the person or family as skills deteriorate. Dementia, Parkinson’s, ALS, cancer, and PPA are  progressive conditions  that can affect communication.

Deglutition  – A scientific word for swallowing, or passing something from the mouth into the stomach via the throat and esophagus. Disorders of deglutition are called  dysphagia . Treatment for dysphagia can be found in our  Dysphagia Therapy app .

Dementia  – An umbrella term for a set of degenerative brain disorders that often affect memory and thinking skills first, before impacting language, emotions, and motivation. Alzheimer’s, Lewy body, frontotemporal, and primary progressive aphasia are all types of dementia. See also  Alzheimer’s .

Divergent Naming  – Listing items in a given category. For example, “name 5 types of fruit” is a task for divergent naming. Often clients in speech therapy are asked to name items within a semantic category or that start with a common sound or letter. These exercises can test and strengthen networks in the brain and highlight organizational difficulties. Find over 200 divergent naming tasks in  Advanced Naming Therapy .

Dysarthria  –  A motor-speech disorder that results in unclear speech, often due to stroke, TBI, Parkinson’s, ALS, or cerebral palsy. This inability to speak clearly is because of weakness, slowness, or lack of coordination in the muscles of the mouth, voice, and lungs. There are several different types of dysarthria. Read “ What is dysarthria? “, then learn how using an app like  AlphaTopics AAC  can help  improve speech intelligibility .

Dysphagia  – Impaired swallowing. Dysphagia is common after a stroke, but also occurs from other neurological conditions or physical damage to the mouth, throat, or esophagus. Speech-language pathologists are experts in the diagnosis and treatment of oral and pharyngeal dysphagia. Exercises, modified diets, and strategies may be recommended after a clinical/bedside or instrumental assessment. Find out more by reading “ What is Dysphagia? “. Clinicians can find information about dysphagia assessment and treatment in the  Dysphagia Therapy app .

Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)  – An approach to clinical practice that values research and evidence of efficacy above tradition when making treatment decisions. Evidence exists along a hierarchy of strength, from clinical expertise and case studies to randomized controlled trials and meta-analyses. Read “ Is this app evidence-based? ” for more information, or find out  the evidence for using Language Therapy .

Executive Functioning  – The term for the overall management of tasks, including planning, reasoning, monitoring, adjusting, problem solving, and evaluating. This is the highest level of cognitive functioning and often impaired in brain injury survivors.

Expressive Aphasia  – A type of aphasia characterized by effortful, non-fluent (fewer than 5 words per utterance), and agrammatic (omitting function words) speech with relatively good auditory comprehension. Syntax and grammar are often impaired for both verbal expression and auditory comprehension. Writing is frequently more impacted than reading, though both are likely to be decreased from previous abilities.  Read more about this type of aphasia, also known as  Broca’s Aphasia .

Fluent Aphasia  –  A type of aphasia in which words, or non-words/jargon, are produced largely without effort in longer bursts. Comprehension is often impaired. Wernicke’s aphasia is a type of fluent aphasia. See a  video of a person with fluent aphasia  to learn more about it.

Frontal Lobe  – One of the four lobes of the brain, located at the front of the skull behind the forehead. The frontal lobe is associated with executive functioning, decision making, self control, and problem solving. It is frequently damaged in brain injuries caused by motor vehicle collisions.

Generalization  – The process of a skill learned in therapy being used in a broader context. Also known as  carry-over  or  transfer .

Hierarchy  – An order of cues, tasks, or stimuli ranked according to difficulty or helpfulness. The cues presented in the  Naming Practice  portion of  Naming Therapy  are arranged in a hierarchy of helpfulness. The levels in  Visual Attention Therapy  are arranged in a hierarchy of difficulty.  Apraxia Therapy  takes users through a hierarchy of repetitions from the most support to the most independence. See also  cueing hierarchy .

In-App Purchase  – An app feature that can be purchased from within the app, after the app is downloaded. This can be a consumable or non-consumable purchase.

Intensive Therapy  – A schedule of delivering speech therapy, usually for aphasia or stuttering, that provides many hours of therapy in a short period of time with the aim of seeing faster and better results. Using apps as part of a home program can help to give people with aphasia more practice to intensify the therapy experience.

International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)  – The set of symbols to represent all the sounds in the world’s languages. 

Intonation  – The rise and fall of pitch in the voice during speech. A component of  prosody .

iOS  – The operating system of Apple’s mobile touch-screen devices: iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.

iPad  – A touch-screen tablet made by Apple. All  Tactus Therapy apps  can run on an iPad.

Jargon  – Non-words produced by a person with aphasia, usually fluent aphasia, that sound like real words and are produced with appropriate intonation. Also, terminology specific to a profession, like most words on this list.

Language  – A system for communicating. The words and rules for combining them understood by a community; can be spoken or written. English, Spanish, and American Sign Language are three examples of languages.  Language Therapy  is an app that covers the 4 basic domains of language: verbal expression, auditory comprehension, written expression, and reading comprehension. Advanced Language Therapy covers these skills at the sentence and paragraph levels.

Left Neglect  – see  Neglect

Letter Supplementation  – A method of pointing at the first letter of each word spoken to give the listener a clue to the word being said and slow down the speaker.  Read how  this strategy can help speakers with unclear speech.

Life Participation Approach to Aphasia (LPAA)  – A philosophy or model of service delivery for aphasia therapy that expands the focus from only addressing the language impairment to also include the person, their environment, and their participation in activities to more fully impact quality of life. Find out  5 things often misunderstood about LPAA .

Memory  – The cognitive process of storing (or encoding) and recalling (or retrieving) information in the brain. There are many types of memory: short-term, long-term, procedural, declarative, semantic, and episodic. Memory can be impaired through an acquired or degenerative brain condition, such as a TBI or dementia.  Spaced Retrieval Therapy  is an app that uses an evidence-based approach to help people remember facts, procedures, or names when memory is impaired.

Motor Speech Disorder  – A problem producing speech, typically a type of  dysarthria  or  apraxia . Results from neurological, neuromuscular, or musculoskeletal problems with respiration, phonation, articulation, resonance, or prosody.

Naming  – The process of saying what you see. The ability to name objects or actions is frequently impaired in people with aphasia and dementia. The  Naming Therapy  app can help practice the ability to name using a cueing hierarchy, semantic feature analysis, phonological component analysis, and picture description – all  evidence-based naming treatments . The Advanced Naming Therapy app uses more complex exercises to improve generative naming and word finding.

Neglect  – A neurological condition that results in a person being unaware of things that appear on one side of their visual field, even though their eyes are fine. Left neglect is more common than right neglect, though both are possible. Read more  about neglect and how to treat it .

Neurologist  – A medical doctor specialized in disorders of the nervous system (brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves).

Neuroplasticity  – The principle that the brain can change, even in adulthood, based on experience. Discover the  10 principles of neuroplasticity  to know which types of treatment are likely to help.

Neuropsychologist  – A psychologist specialized in behaviour as it relates to disorders of the brain. In a stroke or brain injury rehabilitation team, the neuropsychologist will often administer tests of cognitive function.

Numbers  – A special type of language that communicates quantity. The  communication of numbers  is frequently impaired in people with aphasia.  Number Therapy  is an app that works on the transcoding of numbers in speech, listening, and typing activities.

Occupational Therapy (OT)  – A field of therapy that rehabilitates people with physical or mental illness through the performance of everyday tasks. Occupational Therapists often focus on the upper extremity (arm and hand), wheelchair mobility, activities of daily living, and visual-spatial skills in the rehab setting.

Operating System (OS)  – The software that runs the basic functions of a computer, tablet, or smartphone that allows it to launch other software applications. Windows, OS X, Linux, iOS, and Android are some common operating systems. When purchasing apps or software, it is important to ensure they are compatible with the OS of your computer, tablet, or smartphone. For example, an app designed for iOS will not work on your Windows computer or Android tablet.

Parkinson’s Disease  – A progressive or degenerative medical condition that affects movement by impacting the dopamine systems in the brain.  People with Parkinson’s Disease, or Parkinsonian symptoms, can have speech and swallowing problems that can be helped by speech therapy.

Phonation  – Sound made when air vibrates the vocal folds in the larynx to produce speech. In some motor speech disorders, phonation is absent, impaired, or mis-timed.

Phonemes  – The sounds that are distinct in a language. The word “cat” has 3 phonemes: k + æ + t. Phonemes can be written using the International Phonetic Alphabet, or IPA. The  Speech FlipBook  app allows you to create words with specific sets of phonemes.

Phonological Awareness  – A set of skills that allow a person to hear and manipulate the sounds in words regardless of the meaning. Rhyming, alliteration, segmenting, and blending are all phonological awareness skills.

Phonological Components Analysis (PCA)  – An evidence-based therapy technique for aphasia focusing on phonological awareness skills, such as identifying the first and last sounds in a word, generating rhymes of a given word, and counting the syllables in a word.  Naming Therapy  incorporates PCA into the  Describe  activity when the  Sound  cues are turned on in the  Settings . Learn more about  how to do PCA .

Physical Therapy (PT)  – A field of therapy that rehabilitates people with physical impairments through exercise, massage, heat, or other treatments that are not surgery or medication. Physical Therapists often focus on transfer skills (e.g. moving from bed to chair), walking, and climbing stairs in a rehabilitation setting.

Pragmatics  – The social use of language, including tone of voice, taking turns in a  conversation , providing context to a story, and using words appropriate to the audience or situation. Pragmatic skills are often impaired after a brain injury or a stroke on the right side of the brain.

Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA)  – A rare type of frontotemporal dementia that starts with a gradual loss of language. Speech therapy can help to provide strategies for communication or exercises to strengthen language skills to slow the decline. Read “ What is PPA? ” for more information.

Privacy  – Tactus Therapy values your privacy. We never collect any names, personal data, or email addresses through our apps. Healthcare providers can easily keep patient data private using Tactus Therapy apps. See our  privacy policy  for more information.

Prosody  – The melody of speech, including suprasegmental features such as rate, rhythm, intonation, volume, stress, and pitch. Prosody can convey emotion, sarcasm, a question vs a statement, and energy. Damage to the brain can impair a person’s ability to produce or understand prosody. People with Broca’s aphasia or apraxia are often dysprosodic. Those with right-hemisphere damage may not understand the intent of the speaker if sarcasm is used, called sensory or receptive aprosodia.

Question  – A sentence meant to elicit information from someone. A query or interrogative. 

Receptive Aphasia  – Another name for  fluent aphasia  or  Wernicke’s aphasia , used because of the marked difficulty with comprehension.  Read more and see a video  of this type of aphasia.

Recovery  – The process of restoring function after a loss. Recovery from a brain injury or stroke can take years, and may never be a full recovery to previous levels of functioning. However, recovery is always possible to some extent. Read  5 factors you can control in stroke recovery .

Remediation  – Improving the problem. One of 4 approaches used in speech-language therapy. Read  more about remediation  and the other 3 approaches.

Resonance  – The flow of air through the nose or mouth during speech. The velum prevents air from going through the nose in all but the nasal sounds (m, n, ng) in normal speech. Cleft palate, stroke, and progressive diseases can cause disorders in resonance in speech.

Respiration  – Breathing, and the first component of speech production.

Responsive Naming  – Generating the name of an object or idea when given attributes about it. For example, “what do you use to tell time?” could be a question meant to elicit the names “clock” or “watch.” To practice responsive naming, use the  Naming Practice  part of the  Naming Therapy  app and listen to the first definition cue without looking at the picture.

Semantic Feature Analysis (SFA)  – An evidence-based method of naming therapy that entails describing something in a systematic way. Detailing the color, size, shape, function, category, smell, taste, feeling, etc of an object or action is a communication strategy, a prompt to retrieve the word, and a restorative exercise.  Naming Therapy  uses SFA in the Describe activity. Read more about  how to do SFA .

Semantics  -The meaning of language.

Smartphone  – A touch-screen phone that serves as a phone and a mini-computer. It can run apps, browse the web, send text messages, take photos, and handle e-mail. The iPhone is Apple’s smartphone.

Spaced Retrieval  – A scientifically proven method to help people with dementia or other memory impairments actively train to recall important information. Recalling an answer over multiplying intervals of time helps to cement the information in memory.  Spaced Retrieval Therapy  is an enhanced interval timer app with independent data tracking and prompts. Read more about how to do it in our  How To: SRT  guide.

Speech  – The expression of language through articulated sounds. Speech consists of respiration, phonation, articulation, resonance, and prosody. Disorders of speech may include problems with any of these areas, including fluency (stuttering or stammering) and voice.

Speech and Language Therapist (SLT or SALT)  – The same as a Speech-Language Pathologist. This title is used for professionals who are trained to evaluate and treat communication and swallowing disorders in many countries such as the UK.

Speech Therapy  – The treatment of communication and swallowing disorders.

Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP)  – The official title given to professionals who are trained to evaluate and treat communication and swallowing disorders.  The term ‘Speech-Language Pathologist’ is meant to better reflect the scope of practice of professionals commonly referred to as ‘speech therapists.’ In the US and Canada, entry-level education to qualify to be a SLP is a Master’s degree.

Strategy  – A plan for achieving a goal. People with communication and swallowing disorders may benefit from using strategies to do the tasks that have become difficult for them. See also  Compensatory Strategy .

Stroke  – An event inside the brain in which there is a sudden loss of function, also known as a  brain attack  or  cerebrovascular attack (CVA) . A stroke occurs when a part of the brain is deprived of the oxygen it needs to function properly. Learn more by reading  What is a Stroke?  and watching the helpful video.

Subscription  – An ongoing monthly or annual expense to use an app or service. When you stop paying for your subscription, you have no access to the app or service anymore. At Tactus Therapy, we don’t believe in charging you for a subscription. When you purchase our apps, you own them for good. We even give you free updates. Don’t worry about our servers going down or using our apps when you don’t have WiFi. They’ll always work.

Syntax  – The rules for combining words in a language. Syntax is often impaired in non-fluent aphasia.

Tablet  – The generic name for a touch-screen computer or device roughly the size of a pad of paper. The iPad and iPad mini are tablets made by Apple. There are also tablets that run on the Android and Windows operating systems.

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)  –  A jolt or blow to the head or a penetrating head injury that disrupts the normal functioning of the brain. Learn more about  brain injury in this post .

Velar  – A class of sounds produced at the back of the mouth by approximating the base of the tongue to the velum, or soft palate. /k/, /g/, and /ng/ are velar consonant sounds in English.

Visual Scanning  – A treatment for visual attention deficits, or neglect, that can be done with our  Visual Attention Therapy  app. Learn more about how visual scanning works as a treatment in this  How To: Visual Scanning  post.

VNeST  – Verb Network Strengthening Treatment. Learn more about this effective therapy protocol for improving word finding in aphasia in our step-by-step guide on  How To Do VNeST .

Vowel  – Sounds made with an open vocal tract that form the nucleus of a syllable. You can create words lists with any English vowel in  Speech FlipBook .

Wernicke’s Aphasia  – A type of fluent aphasia with poor auditory comprehension and jargon speech. See  Fluent Aphasia  for more or read  this story  about a couple dealing with Wernicke’s aphasia.

Wh Question  – A type of question that starts with one of these words that starts with “wh”: who, what, where, when, why, which, whose. “How” is also often considered a wh question. 

Yes/No Question  – A type of question that can be answered with “yes” or “no.”

Want to learn more about speech and language disorders in adults? Visit our Learn pages to discover other helpful resources. We also have a wide variety of  apps for speech therapy  you can download to get started on improving communication today.  

If you liked this article, Share It !

Megan S. Sutton , MS, CCC-SLP is a speech-language pathologist and co-founder of Tactus Therapy. She is an international speaker, writer, and educator on the use of technology in adult medical speech therapy. Megan believes that technology plays a critical role in improving aphasia outcomes and humanizing clinical services.

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Types of Speech Therapy

Different speech therapy approaches and techniques are used for various issues

• List of Types
• For Late Talkers
• For Apraxia
• For Stuttering
• For Aphasia
• For Swallowing

Frequently Asked Questions

Speech therapy is not one thing. There are different types of speech therapy, each of which involves approaches and techniques that are specific to the issue that needs addressing. That could be related to speech itself—e.g., therapy for people who stutter—or it could relate to problems with memory swallowing, and more.

A speech-language pathologist (SLP), often just called a speech therapist, will perform assessments to determine which type(s) of speech therapy is right for you.

This article reviews the different types of speech therapy and the various disorders each one can be used to treat.

Types of Speech Therapy Used by Speech Therapists

A speech-language pathologist can use different types of speech therapy to help people with problems related to:

• Fluency (e.g., stuttering, and cluttering)
• Speech (e.g., articulation)
• Language (e.g., ability; comprehension of spoken and written language)
• Cognition (e.g., attention, memory, ability to solve problems)
• Voice (e.g., characteristics of vocal tone)
• Swallowing (e.g., stroke, congenital disorders)

In addition to different speech therapy techniques, SLPs may also provide auditory habilitation & auditory rehabilitation for people with hearing problems or disorders.

Some SLPs specialize in other services including professional voice development, accent or dialect modification, transgender voice therapy , business communication modification, and voice hygiene.

Speech Therapy for Late Talkers

A common speech therapy method is used to help children who have reached the expected age for speech development but have not started talking .

If your infant or toddler should be talking by now but isn't, they may be referred to a speech therapist. The therapist will likely try different things to encourage your child to talk, including playing with him. Sometimes, withholding a favorite toy until a child asks for it motivates small children to talk, but this depends on the circumstance.

For some children, other types of communication, such as sign language or picture cards, might be introduced. Speech therapists may also refer your child for further evaluation, such as hearing tests if necessary.

Speech Therapy for Kids With Apraxia

Certain speech therapy techniques are helpful for kids with apraxia.

Children with apraxia of speech have difficulty saying certain syllables or making certain sounds. Your child knows what they want to say, but it doesn't seem to come out right. Speech therapists are qualified to evaluate children for apraxia by using several tests, including:

• Oral-motor assessment to check for muscle weakness in the jaw, lips, or tongue
• Melody of speech assessment during which the therapist listens to see if they can appropriately stress certain syllables and use pitch and pauses at the appropriate place in a sentence
• Speech sound assessment further determines how well the child can pronounce sounds, including vowels, consonants, and sound combinations. This includes determining how well others are able to understand the child's conversational speech

If your child is diagnosed with apraxia , they will probably need speech therapy on a one-on-one basis several times per week. This therapy will likely consist of intensively practicing their speech. The therapist will try to help your child understand auditory feedback as well as visual or tactile cues.

One way a therapist might do this is to have your child look at themselves in a mirror while speaking, or record them speaking and then playing it back. Many children enjoy this.

Since successful treatment for apraxia involves a lot of time and commitment, your therapist may give you assignments to practice with your child at home.

Speech Therapy for Stuttering

Speech therapy techniques can be applied to help treat stuttering.

Stuttering is a problem that typically develops during childhood but can develop during adulthood as well. Stuttering is usually considered a type of behavioral problem. Speech therapists will try to teach your child who stutters behavioral modification techniques that in turn may help control their stuttering.

A common method that may be used on your child is to teach them to control the rate of speech since speaking too quickly can make stuttering worse for some people. Practicing speech in a slower, more fluent manner can be helpful. It can also be helpful to monitor breathing.

Even after treatment, people who stutter may require follow-up sessions with their speech therapist to keep the problem from recurring.

Speech Therapy for Aphasia

Some speech therapy methods help people with aphasia . Speech therapy assessments can also help determine if someone has the condition.

Aphasia is a condition that causes difficulty speaking as a result of some sort of damage to the brain. The condition can also consist of difficulty listening, reading, and writing. Aphasia happens to many adults after they have experienced a stroke .

Speech therapists play a crucial role in diagnosing aphasia by evaluating an individual's ability to understand others, express themselves, and even swallow. There are many different things a speech therapist might do to help a person with aphasia, including:

• Drills to improve specific language skills
• Group therapy to improve conversational skills
• Gestures and writing to augment their communication skills

Speech Therapy for Swallowing Difficulty

Speech therapy techniques can also be used to help people who are not able to swallow when they eat or drink.

Your child may experience difficulty swallowing for a variety of reasons. A speech therapist may help your child with swallowing difficulty by assisting them with exercises to make her mouth strong, increase tongue movement, and improve chewing.

A speech therapist may also make recommendations about the consistency of food. For infants, a speech therapist may assist in coordinating her suck-swallow-breath pattern. As previously mentioned these are only some of the things that a speech therapist might do. There are many other conditions and methods used to evaluate those in need.

There are different types of speech therapy that can be used to treat various disorders affecting speech, hearing, and swallowing. Children and adults with speech delays, apraxia, swallowing problems, and certain medical conditions may benefit from working with a speech therapist.

A speech therapist evaluates, diagnoses, and treats speech issues and communication problems, as well as swallowing disorders. They provide various services, from teaching articulation and clear speaking to helping strengthen muscles used to talk and swallow.

The four types of articulation disorders are substitution, omission, distortion, and addition. Speech-language pathologists use the acronym SODA to remember them.

Childhood Apraxia of Speech: Treatment . Asha.org.

Chang S, Synnestvedt A, Ostuni J, Ludlow C. Similarities in speech and white matter characteristics in idiopathic developmental stuttering and adult-onset stuttering .  J Neurolinguistics . 2010;23(5):455-469. doi:10.1016/j.jneuroling.2008.11.004

Stuttering . Asha.org.

American Psychological Association. APA Dictionary of Psychology - Definition of Articulation Disorder .

Scope of Practice in Speech-Language Pathology . American Speech-Language-Hearing Association website.

Childhood Apraxia of Speech . American Speech-Language-Hearing Association website.

Feeding and Swallowing Disorders (Dysphagia) in Children . American Speech-Language-Hearing Association website.

By Kristin Hayes, RN Kristin Hayes, RN, is a registered nurse specializing in ear, nose, and throat disorders for both adults and children.

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What Is Speech Therapy?

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Speech therapy is a form of healthcare that helps improve communication and speech. It can also help improve swallowing function and other behaviors related to feeding.

About one in 12 children in the United States has a speech or swallowing disorder. Disorders are most common in young children, but many adults have a related condition. For example, about one million adults in the United States have aphasia (difficulty expressing or comprehending written and verbal language).

Speech therapists (STs) or speech-language pathologists (SLPs) assess and treat people of all ages. They use various techniques to help people with challenges related to speech production, language comprehension, hearing, voice quality, fluency, and swallowing. 

What Does Speech Therapy Treat?

Speech therapy treats various disorders involving hearing, speech, language, literacy, social communication, voice quality, executive functioning (for example, memory and problem-solving), feeding, and swallowing.

Specific speech disorders include:

• Articulation disorders: Difficulty pronouncing words or sounds such as the “s” sound (for example, saying “thun” rather than “sun”). This can occur during childhood language development or with structural problems like tongue-tie. A tongue tie is when a small band of skin connects the tip of the tongue to the bottom of the mouth. It is congenital, meaning it's present at birth.
• Dysarthria: Slow, slurred, or unclear speech. This occurs with oral (mouth) muscle control decline due to neurological conditions (related to the brain or nervous system), such as multiple sclerosis (MS) —a condition that occurs when the immune system attacks myelin, the covering wrapped around nerve cells.
• Apraxia: Knowing what you want to say but having difficulty producing the correct sounds or words. Apraxia can cause slow, error-prone speech or the need to intentionally move your tongue and lips in order to produce sounds and words. Apraxia can be present at birth, but it can also occur as a result of brain injuries, brain tumors , or a stroke .
• Fluency disorders: Speech flow disruptions like stuttering. Stuttering is experiencing interruptions in speech and repeating sounds, syllables, or words. Researchers are still exploring possible causes of dysfluency, but they seem to include genetics, developmental components, neurological factors (how the brain processes), and brain injury. Many children outgrow fluency disorders, but they can persist into adulthood.
• Voice disorders: Vocal cord spasming (choppy voice), hoarseness, pitch problems, or voice fatigue are examples of voice disorders. This can result from infection, overusing the vocal cords, or neurological disorders. 

Language or communication disorders include:

• Aphasia : Aphasia is a language disorder in which you have difficulty expressing or comprehending written and verbal language. Receptive aphasia is difficulty understanding written or verbal words. Expressive aphasia is difficulty communicating thoughts and ideas with language components like vocabulary, grammar, and sentence formation. Aphasia can occur with childhood development, language impairment, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), brain injury, or neurological disorders.
• Pragmatic language disorder: This relates to social communication. Signs include misunderstanding social cues like eye contact, body language, and personal space. It can occur during childhood development or with underlying neurodivergence (brain variation), such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) , a brain development condition that affects how a person perceives and socializes with other people.
• Accent or tone: While this is not a disorder, speech therapists can also work with people who wish to modify their accent or an unusual speech rhythm, pitch, or tone. For example, a high-pitched, sing-song, or robotic tone can occur with ASD.
• Executive functioning: Executive functioning challenges include difficulty with memory, planning, organization, problem-solving, and attention. This can occur due to brain injuries or conditions like ASD and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) , a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention (being distracted), hyperactivity (feeling restless), and impulsivity (making hasty decisions).
• Auditory processing disorder: This is a neurological condition that makes it difficult to make sense of sounds. 

Feeding and swallowing disorders affect how you suck, chew, and swallow food and drinks. Difficulty swallowing is also known as dysphagia , which can result in choking during meals—and lung infections if food or liquid enters the airways.  It can occur with structural abnormalities, muscular weakness, or neurological conditions like a stroke.  

How Does Speech Therapy Work?

Speech therapy involves techniques like language practice, pronunciation exercises, voice therapy, and swallowing exercises. It begins with a thorough assessment, including observation of communication strategies, challenges, and frustrations.

Speech therapy for infants, toddlers, and children involves fun and engaging activities like play, language exercises, reading, picture cards, and modeling correct sounds. This helps make learning more enjoyable.  

Parents or caregivers often attend sessions and learn ways to support children at home. The ST or SLP will tailor the treatment plan to the child’s developmental stage. Early recognition and intervention (treatment) can help improve outcomes.

With adults, the ST or SLP will begin with an assessment to identify specific challenges. They will then create a specific care plan that addresses underlying concerns such as:

• Medical conditions
• Accent modification
• Voice challenges
• Pronunciation
• Conversational language
• Problem-solving
• Memory exercises

What To Expect During Speech Therapy

Speech therapy can occur in a class, small group, online, or one-on-one. Speech therapists typically assign exercises to practice at home in order to reinforce what you learn. Activities might include:

• Vocal warm-ups like humming 
• Tongue twisters to improve articulation
• Breaking words into syllables to improve clarity
• Contrasting word exercises—for example, "ship" versus "sheep"
• “Pausing” practice (for stuttering)
• Repetition after listening to a native speaker 
• Repetition exercises for sounds like “s” 
• Speech rate control—for example, by tapping hands to a beat
• Pitch exercises
• Breathing and posture exercises

Receptive language exercises include:

• Memory or problem-solving exercises
• Reading comprehension (similar to a book report)
• Speech supplementation (written, gestural, voice amplifier, speech-generating devices)
• Word association
• Communication partner exercises, such as practicing eye contact and active listening

Exercises for swallowing and feeding include:

• Diet modification (pureed to solid foods)
• Oral muscle strengthening (like tongue “push-ups”)
• Swallowing exercises

Benefits of Speech Therapy

One of the main goals of speech therapy is to enhance a person’s ability to express thoughts, ideas, and emotions effectively. This can lead to a greater sense of self-expression, meaningful interactions with others, and less frustration. Other benefits include:

• Greater self-confidence: Gaining more control over language and communication can increase confidence and boost self-esteem. As a result, you might be more willing and excited to engage in social activities. 
• Improved academic or professional performance: Clear speech and language can lead to enhanced skills in comprehension, reading, and writing. This can support academic success. Better articulation, language, and presentation abilities can help with career development.
• Greater independence: Speech therapy can lead to greater self-reliance, especially if you have severe communication challenges. For example, augmented and alternative communication (AAC) methods , such as speech-generating devices (SGDs), can allow you to express yourself more independently.

How Successful Is Speech Therapy?

Speech therapy's “success” depends on your goals. The meaning of success can vary based on your underlying communication or medical condition and its severity, as well as your motivation and commitment to therapy, the therapist's expertise, and your support systems. The time it takes to reach your goals also varies based on underlying factors like these.

For example, you may define success as improved pronunciation, or you may work towards more effective communication, more skilled accent modification, or swallowing without choking. If you stutter, your goal might be improved fluency or feeling more comfortable communicating openly with a stutter. For most people, what’s most important is to set realistic expectations and recognize that any improvement in communication is a success.

How To Find a Speech Therapist

A qualified speech therapist or speech-language pathologist holds a master's degree in speech-language pathology and state licensure to practice in your area. You can find speech therapists in settings like:

• Home health agencies
• Rehabilitation centers
• Private practice
• Telehealth (online)

You can also ask for recommendations from healthcare providers or school personnel who may know local speech therapists. The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) also offers an online directory of certified speech therapies to help you locate someone in your area.

Check with your health insurance provider to see if they cover speech therapy. They can provide you with information about your co-payments and deductibles. If your insurance doesn't cover the cost, the clinic or speech therapist may offer payment plans. Some children may also qualify for:

• Individualized education programs (IEPs) that cover speech therapy costs as a service from the school district
• Early intervention (EI) or Preschool on Preschool Special Education (CPSE) programs for infants and toddlers for little or no cost to families
• State and federal programs, like Medicaid
• Financial assistance programs from non-profit and advocate organizations

A Quick Review

Speech therapy is a specialized healthcare field in which trained professionals help improve speech, language, hearing, swallowing, and feeding for people of all ages. Speech therapists (STs) and speech-language pathologists (SLPs) thoroughly assess and develop specific treatment plans for a wide range of conditions including difficulty communicating or processing language, stuttering, and voice disorders.

Speech therapy takes place in locations like schools, hospitals, and private practice. It can be one-on-one or in a group setting. Success depends on underlying factors such as the severity of the condition. It also depends on personal goals and your definition of success—which can vary widely from person to person.

Many people who have speech therapy experience powerful benefits that affect them in nearly every aspect of life, including greater self-confidence and self-reliance.

National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. Quick statistics about voice, speech, language .

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American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Who are speech-language pathologists, and what do they do? .

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Krekeler BN, Weycker JM, Connor NP. Effects of tongue exercise frequency on tongue muscle biology and swallowing physiology in a rat Model . Dysphagia . 2020; 35 (6):918. doi:10.1007/s00455-020-10105-2

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National Institute of Health Clinical Center. Speech and language pathology .

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Dysarthria in adult

Brady MC, Kelly H, Godwin J, Enderby P, Campbell P. Speech and language therapy for aphasia following stroke . The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews . 2016 (6). doi:10.1002/14651858.CD000425.pub4

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Scope of practice in speech-language pathology .

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Help finding a professional .

Related Articles

April’s Jan Dils Golden Apple Award Winner is Nicki Foggin

She is a speech therapist at madison elementary.

PARKERSBURG, W.Va . (WTAP) - Nicki Foggin is the Jan Dils Golden Apple Award Winner for April.

Foggin is a speech therapist at Madison Elementary.

Nicki has been at Madison for about five years and has helped many students with their speech and language abilities.

“I have a lot of kids that come that are either nonverbal or minimally verbal -they don’t speak much. And I get very excited when they are finally able to communicate. What parents tell me, they say, ‘the first time they’re ever saying they want something  or I love you or saying mom for the first time it’s very exciting.’ I get pretty excited also about that.”

Nicki was nominated for this award by the parent of a child she helped.

Nicki said she was surprised to receive this award.

“I was very surprised. I’m very touched and I think that’s very sweet. I never really think about why I do the things I’m doing. I just try to do what’s best for the kids every  day, so.”

Teaching isn’t always easy, and there can be hard days…. but Nicki says it’s very rewarding.

“At the end of the day you go home knowing that you did something for somebody and you just try and do that best you can do for each day.”

Copyright 2024 WTAP. All rights reserved.

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Sunak accused of launching ‘full-on assault on disabled people’

PM criticised for personal independence payment review amid ‘spiralling’ disability welfare bill

Rishi Sunak is considering withdrawing a major cash disability benefit from some people with mental health conditions, prompting claims he has launched a “full-on assault on disabled people”.

The prime minister announced fresh curbs on disability benefits on Friday, saying he wanted to explore whether some cash payments to claimants with mental health conditions could be replaced by treatment or access to services.

In a speech on welfare, Sunak said he was launching a consultation on the personal independence payment (Pip), a non-means-tested benefit paid to disabled people to help with the extra living costs caused by long-term disability or ill health.

He said that in addition to reviewing payments to people with mental health conditions, the government would look at whether some other disabled people should get help with one-off costs rather than continuing payments.

The announcement triggered an outcry from disability charities, which said the rates of people being signed off work and claiming benefits were being caused by crumbling public services, poor-quality jobs and high rates of poverty among disabled households. Mind, the mental health charity, said services for mental health conditions were “at breaking point”.

There are 1.9 million people on a waiting list for mental health treatment in England, meaning the treatment they should be able to access through the NHS is not currently available to them.

Sunak said Britain was proud to have a strong safety net of welfare payments to those who needed them, but he also said the country had a “sicknote culture” that needed to be tackled.

He said “something has gone wrong” since the pandemic to increase the number of economically inactive people who are long-term sick, especially with mental health conditions.

“Most worrying, the biggest proportion of long-term sickness came from young people … parked on welfare,” Sunak said.

He said the country could not afford the “spiralling” disability welfare bill of £69bn, which was now more than the core schools budget, and claimed the Pip budget was forecast to increase by 50% in the next four years.

Other measures he set out included:

Shifting responsibility for issuing fit notes, formerly known as sicknotes, away from GPs to other “work and health professionals” in order to encourage more people to return to work.

Confirming plans to legislate “in the next parliament” to close benefit claims for anyone who has been claiming for 12 months but is not complying with conditions on accepting available work.

Asking more people on universal credit working part-time to look for more work by increasing the earnings threshold from £743 a month to £892 a month, so people paid below this amount have to seek extra hours.

Confirming plans to tighten the work capability assessment to require more people with “less severe conditions” to seek some forms of employment.

On the review of Pip, Sunak said it may be right to pay one-off costs for adaptations, but that the payments may not need to be ongoing.

The prime minister said the government would look at whether more medical evidence about conditions should be provided, as some payments were made on the basis of “subjective and unverifiable claims”.

He said some people with mental health conditions may be better served by treatment and access to therapies rather than cash payments.

Sunak also warned about the “the risk of over-medicalising the everyday challenges and worries of life” when it came to paying benefits to people with mental health conditions.

His comments were echoed by Mel Stride, the work and pensions secretary, who told Sky News on Friday: “If you go to the GP and say you are feeling a little bit depressed, and you’re signed off, in 94% of occasions, a box is ticked that says you’re not capable of work whatsoever.

“What we want to do is change the system so that that individual will be referred to – the government is setting up something called Work Well – where they will get both the healthcare support they need, but also a work coach who will be involved to either help them stay in work if they are in employment, or to help them get into work if they’re not.”

Ed Davey, the Liberal Democrat leader, said: “Millions of people are stuck on NHS waiting lists, unable to get a GP appointment or struggling to access mental health support. Rishi Sunak is attempting to blame the British people for his own government’s failures on the economy and the NHS and it simply won’t wash.”

Matthew Pennycook, the shadow housing minister, said Sunak had been pursuing a “cheap headline” over his claims that Britain has a “sicknote culture”.

“There has been a long-term rise for many, many years under this government in people who are on long-term sickness benefits, either because they can’t get the treatment they need through the NHS, which is on its knees after 14 years of Conservative government, or they are not getting the proper support to get back into work,” he said.

Charities warned that the benefit curbs would make people’s problems worse. James Taylor, the director of strategy at the disability equality charity Scope, said the speech “feels like a full-on assault on disabled people”.

“These proposals are dangerous and risk leaving disabled people destitute,” he said. “In a cost of living crisis, looking to slash disabled people’s income by hitting Pip is a horrific proposal.

“Calls are pouring into our helpline from concerned disabled people. Life costs more for disabled people. Threatening to take away the low amount of income Pip provides to disabled people who face £950 a month extra costs isn’t going to solve the problem of economic inactivity … Much of the current record-levels of inactivity are because our public services are crumbling, the quality of jobs is poor and the rate of poverty amongst disabled households is growing.”

Dr Sarah Hughes, the chief executive of Mind, said the mental health charity was “deeply disappointed that the prime minister’s speech today continues a trend in recent rhetoric which conjures up the image of a ‘mental health culture’ that has ‘gone too far’.

“This is harmful, inaccurate and contrary to the reality for people up and down the country,” she said. “The truth is that mental health services are at breaking point following years of underinvestment, with many people getting increasingly unwell while they wait to receive support. Indeed the Care Quality Commission’s latest figures on community mental health services show that nearly half of people (44%) waiting for treatment found their mental health deteriorated in this time.”

Iain Porter, a senior policy adviser at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said the prime minister had launched an “irresponsible war of words on people who already aren’t getting enough support, which the government would rather not talk about”.

“Many people want to work, as the prime minister says, but have their hopes dashed by woeful health and wellbeing support and job centres unfit for purpose,” he said.

• Rishi Sunak
• Conservatives
• Mental health

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A lawyer, a banker and a speech therapist: Meet the 12 jury members of Trump’s hush money trial

All 12 jurors, plus an alternate, were selected this week to serve on the jury in former President Donald Trump’s  hush money trial  in New York after they made it clear to both sides that they could render a fair and impartial verdict.

Prosecutors and the defense team whittled down a pool of nearly 200 people to 12 jurors and an alternate after grilling them on their personal history, political views, social media posts, and ability to remain impartial despite any opinions they might have about the polarizing former president.

Seven people were sworn in Tuesday but two of them ended up being removed on Thursday for possible conflicts. Later Thursday, the remaining seven jurors were sworn in, plus one alternate.

The trial is expected to last as long as eight weeks.

Rebecca Shabad is a politics reporter for NBC News based in Washington.

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Meaning of speech therapist in English

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• A speech therapist can identify mechanical problems (such as tongue thrusting ) and teach your child the appropriate exercises to correct them.
• A speech therapist will advise on language activities parents can carry out at home .
• Increasing numbers of call-centre workers are being referred to speech therapists because they are losing their voices .
• It was not until a referral to a speech therapist that the four-year-old George was diagnosed .
• Speech therapists address communication difficulties in comprehension and expression , as well as fluency and voice .
• acupuncturist
• anaesthetist
• brain surgeon
• candy striper
• care navigator
• casualty officer
• flying doctor
• ministering angel
• nurse consultant
• nurse practitioner
• nurse specialist
• nurse's aide
• nursing aid
• occupational therapist
• radiographer
• stretcher-bearer

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relating to the scientific study of animals, especially their structure

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