Podcasts about slp

Ever feel like you should have language therapy figured out by now, but you're still struggling? Even experienced clinicians can feel that way.In this episode, I'm sharing a case study of a seasoned SLP who, despite years of experience, felt like she was missing a key piece of the puzzle when it came to language therapy. Battling decision fatigue and a lack of a reliable system, she joined my Language Therapy Advance Foundations program and created a reliable system that made her feel confident showing up to sessions.In this episode, we'll discuss:✅ Overcoming the feeling of inadequacy as a veteran clinician and acknowledging the need for a more structured approach to language therapy.✅ How streamlining decision-making allowed for more focused therapy sessions. ✅ Strategies for working on language skills that support executive functioning. ✅ Creating a predictable, efficient system for building language skills that support reading and writing. This case study came from a member of Language Therapy Advance Foundations, my program that gives SLPs and other service providers create a system for language therapy. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarenspeech.com/languagetherapy/ We're thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL's comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more:Simplify and streamline technologySave teachers' timeReliably meet Tier 1 standardsImprove student performance on state assessments

SLP fear is real, but facts are louder. In this Fix SLP Podcast episode, Dr. Jeanette Benigas, SLP, and Preston Lewis, MS/SLP, unpack the top fears heard daily: Praxis retakes, reinstating the ASHA CCC, supervision requirements, getting overlooked by misinformed employers, whether CCC status affects international portability via the Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) with the UK, Canada, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, and how employer education, not court battles, drives SLP autonomy and better jobs.This episode shows how to turn fear into facts: evaluating your local job market, approaching HR about removing CCC requirements, clarifying supervision rules, and proving that patient outcomes, not extra letters, define true competence in the field.Thank you to our sponsor, ⭐️ Informed Jobs, ⭐️ connecting SLPs with meaningful job opportunities and career resources to keep you informed and empowered. Explore more at informedslp.com. Just click the menu, then select "Jobs"!

Ep 338: The Missing Link in Pediatric Feeding: Critical Skills Grad Programs SkipIn this episode, Hallie Bulkin discusses the critical gaps in pediatric feeding education that graduate programs often overlook. She emphasizes the importance of understanding messy eating behaviors and tethered oral tissues, and how these insights can enhance therapy outcomes. Hallie introduces her course, Feed the Peds, which aims to equip therapists with the necessary skills and confidence to address these challenges effectively. The episode serves as a call to action for professionals in the field to enroll before the course closes, highlighting the unique structure and benefits of the program.In this episode, you'll learn✔️Grad school did not prepare us for pediatric feeding.✔️Many programs focus on broader pediatric topics, neglecting feeding.✔️Therapists often feel unprepared and seek more information.✔️Feed the Peds offers unique insights not found elsewhere.✔️Understanding messy eating can lead to faster therapy outcomes.✔️Competence in therapy builds confidence for clinicians.✔️The course includes mentorship and a comprehensive roadmap.✔️Participants report feeling more equipped after the course.✔️The course is structured to foster critical thinking in therapy.RELATED EPISODES YOU MIGHT LOVEEpisode 316: Navigating The World of Pediatric Feeding Therapy with Brittnee Tollison, M.Ed, CCC-SLP, CBC, CPFT™Episode 318: Feed The Peds®: The Mission with Hallie Bulkin, MA CCC-SLP, CMT®, CPFT™✨ FREE TRAINING ALERT – HAPPENING SEPTEMBER 8–10!If you're an SLP, OT, or student… you need to join me for the FREE 3-Day Pediatric Feeding Screening Training. Over 34,000 of your colleagues have done it — now it's your turn!Here's what you'll get when you sign up:4 hours on a certificate of completion (perfect for your renewal hours)My complete pediatric feeding screening packet — development chart, 50-symptom checklist, findings chart & referral formA chance to win a full scholarship to the 12-week Feed The Peds® courseGrab your spot here → www.feedthepeds.com/trainingOTHER WAYS TO CONNECT & LEARN

Thinking about becoming a Registered Behavior Technician (RBT)? There are now over 200,000 certified RBTs, and in this episode, I'm joined by Jackie Jung, an RBT currently pursuing a career in speech-language pathology. A Registered Behavior Technician is a paraprofessional who works directly with individuals receiving ABA services, implementing treatment plans under the supervision of a BCBA.Jackie shares her journey into this role and walks us through the steps to becoming certified: completing a 40-hour training course, passing an exam, and demonstrating skills through a competency assessment—all of which may be covered or supported by your employer.We also discuss the essential skills RBTs need, including play-based strategies and de-escalation techniques, and Jackie highlights the growing need for well-trained professionals in the field. Starting in 2026, RBTs will be required to complete CEUs every two years—a change we're ready to support at ABA Speech Connection with high-quality continuing education. #autism #speechtherapy What's Inside:What is an RBT?How can you become a Registered Behavior Technician?Transitioning in the ABA field.New requirements for RBTs coming in 2026!  Mentioned In This Episode:Speech Join the aba speech connection, learn more about our RBT membership tier.  ABA Speech: Home

By popular demand, we're bringing back one of the most impactful episodes! This conversation dives into the powerful link between stress and behavior in autistic children, and why compassionate, neurodiversity-affirming approaches make all the difference. You'll discover how to reframe behavior as communication, support self-advocacy, and create environments that reduce stress and meet the unique needs of autistic children. Whether you're an educator, therapist, or parent, this episode offers practical tools you can use right away. Key Takeaways: Stress and behavior are closely linked for autistic children. Environments that increase stress can make behaviors harder. Behavior is communication—understanding it is essential. Compassionate approaches focus on unmet needs, not compliance. Compliance-driven methods can harm emotional well-being. Self-advocacy is critical for safety and empowerment. Protests and refusals are valid forms of communication. Predictable routines can ease anxiety. Co-regulation helps children manage emotions. Communication tools empower autistic children to thrive. Resources & Links: Research article #1: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6061115/ Research article #2: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3245359/ Calming Kit for preschoolers: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Calm-Down-Kit-For-Calming-Corner-In-Special-Education-8140160 You may also be interested in these supports: Visual Support Starter Set  Visual Supports Facebook Group Autism Little Learners on Instagram Autism Little Learners on Facebook  

In this powerhouse episode, Dr. Adam Robin sits down with entrepreneur, investor, and unapologetic capitalist Paul Singh, CEO of Strata PT, for an unfiltered conversation on building successful businesses—inside and outside of healthcare. Paul has invested in over 3,200 companies across multiple industries, giving him a rare, big-picture perspective on what really drives growth. He shares why the core challenges in healthcare mirror those in other industries, and how private practice owners can leverage proven business principles to scale smarter.They dive into:The surprising similarities between healthcare and other industriesKey business lessons from investing in 3,200 companiesHow Strata PT is helping PT, OT, SLP, and ABA clinics run strongerThe mindset shifts every owner needs to compete and winWhy focusing on fundamentals will always beat chasing trends If you're ready to think bigger about your private practice and borrow success strategies from the best in business, this is a must-listen episode.

Some days it feels like I'm living a double life. I'm in work mode -- teaching grad students or coaching SLPs -- and at the same time my brain is screaming about school picture day forms, dinner plans, or how to get the kids to practice on time. If you've ever felt like you're straddling two boats (bad visual, but you get it), this episode is for you.Today I'm talking about the mental gymnastics of switching between roles -- SLP, mom, partner, caregiver, all of it. And more importantly, why it feels so hard (spoiler: your brain isn't broken, it's human) and what we can actually do about it.What You'll Learn in This Episode:Why context switching drains your energy (especially for ADHD brains)How unrealistic expectations create guilt — and what to do instead3 strategies to make the juggle feel less like chaosMindset shifts that actually make strategies stickIf This Resonates…If this hit home, I'd love to help you untangle the work-life blend in a way that actually works for you. Book a free consult—we'll figure it out together.

Is your life a sermon? Do you imagine your every action being narrated by a general authority? In this episode, Stephen Carter dives into perfectionism, showing how it manifests in people’s lives, and proposing a few odd ways to escape it. (Hint: Not through fasting and prayer.) https://sunstone.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/SLP-205.mp3

Incendio en Veracruz deja 6 lesionados La soberanía no se negocia: Claudia Sheinbaum  Más información en nuestro Podcast

Send us a textEver wonder why some hearing healthcare professionals seem so passionate about advocacy while others shy away? Our conversation dives into the heart of building an advocacy culture that transforms not just legislation, but patient care itself.We explore the critical importance of starting advocacy education during AuD and SLP programs. As our guest, Dr. Megan Adams insightfully notes, "Informed students become informed professionals" who can make better clinical decisions and effectively advocate for patients throughout their careers. The good news? Universities don't need complete curriculum overhauls, even a few targeted class sessions can equip future professionals with the advocacy tools they'll need.Many clinicians and private practice owners hesitate to engage in advocacy because they don't see themselves as "political" or "persuasive" enough. We dispel this myth by revealing that most advocacy involves simply educating lawmakers about what audiologists do and why quality hearing care matters. Your expertise is your most powerful advocacy tool—no special personality required.The consequences of disengagement can be severe. We discuss alarming attempts in several states to replace professional licensure with simple registration systems, which threatens accountability and patient safety. Our guest shares a compelling case from Indiana where hearing aid sales were nearly completely deregulated until professionals rallied to educate legislators about the potential harm to patients.Perhaps most inspiring is the call to shift from defensive to offensive advocacy. Rather than constantly reacting to problematic legislation, proactive education of policymakers creates an environment where harmful bills are less likely to advance in the first place. When legislators understand hearing healthcare, they make better decisions.Whether you're a seasoned advocate or have never contacted a legislator, this conversation offers practical wisdom for making a difference. Listen now to discover how your voice—regardless of how loud you choose to be—can help shape the future of hearing healthcare.Connect with the Hearing Matters Podcast TeamEmail: hearingmatterspodcast@gmail.com Instagram: @hearing_matters_podcast Twitter: @hearing_mattasFacebook: Hearing Matters Podcast

What if choosing between language and executive functioning for your students wasn't an "either/or" decision? And how can we effectively balance academic content with broader cognitive skills? It's a complex challenge, and the answer isn't always obvious.In this episode, I share commentary and a clip of my conversation with Jill Fahy, where we discuss the impact of executive functioning skills on the college experience. Jill is a licensed speech-language pathologist and professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Eastern Illinois University. She is also the co-director of the Autism Center and Director of the Students with Autism Transitional Education Program, where she develops and delivers transitional programming in social skills and executive functions for college students. In this episode, you'll discover:✅ Should we work on language or executive functioning first? The answer isn't straightforward.✅ Balancing academic content areas and broader cognitive skills: Why both parents and professionals need to learn about executive functioning as it relates to their context. ✅ Educating the public on cognition and evidence-based practices, and why it's so easy for vulnerable individuals to grasp on to pseudoscience. ✅ How to use “asset stacking” to address the need to work on multiple interconnected areas at once (e.g., content area skills, language, cognition).You can connect with Jill via email at jkfahy@eiu.edu. You can read her article, Assessment of Executive Functions in School-Aged Children: Challenges and Solutions for the SLP from ASHA Perspectives here: https://pubs.asha.org/doi/10.1044/sbi15.4.151You can learn more about the Students Transitional Education Program at Eastern Illinois University here: https://www.eiu.edu/step/ and the Autism Center here: https://www.eiu.edu/autismcenter/In this episode, I mention the School of Clinical Leadership, my program for related service providers who want to take a leadership role in implementing executive functioning support. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/efleadership We're thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL's comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more:Simplify and streamline technologySave teachers' timeReliably meet Tier 1 standardsImprove student performance on state assessments

Did you know that the questions we ask children should change as they develop? Asking the right questions at the right time helps children's communication flourish.Paula LaSala-Filangeri is a Speech-Language Pathologist who has been supporting children and families for over 25 years.How can parents move beyond flashcards and start turning everyday routines, like walking in nature or baking a cake, into powerful opportunities for language growth?Here are a few of the key insights we'll explore:

Hi friends, welcome back to the Autism Little Learners Podcast. I'm Tara, a speech-language pathologist who has spent over 25 years working with young autistic children and their families. Today, we're going to talk about a topic that brings up a lot of feelings for educators, therapists, and parents: the Picture Exchange Communication System, or PECS. Specifically, why PECS isn't enough for preschoolers. Now, before I dive in, I want to be clear—PECS is not evil. It's not “bad.” For many kids, it has opened the door to communication, and that's something to celebrate. But PECS, on its own, isn't enough. Our preschoolers need more than compliance-based exchanges to build rich, lifelong communication. Takeaways PECS was created in the 1990s to teach kids to request items using pictures. Traditional PECS training often emphasized compliance over authentic communication. Rigid use of PECS protocols sometimes caused frustration and meltdowns in children. PECS has major limitations, including prompt dependency and a narrow focus on requests. Research shows PECS helps with requesting, but not broader communication or social connection. Evidence-based practice must balance research, clinical experience, and client perspectives. Autistic adults report that PECS can restrict autonomy, dignity, and language development. PECS can be a stepping stone, but should not be the final communication system. Robust AAC systems provide greater vocabulary, flexibility, and authentic language use. Communication should always prioritize connection, not compliance. Resources & Links: Jordyn Zimmerman's Article:  https://communicationfirst.org/slps-as-aac-gatekeepers/ Julie Roberts Article: https://therapistndc.org/the-problem-with-pecs/ Research Article: https://pure.psu.edu/en/publications/a-review-and-analysis-of-the-picture-exchange-communication-syste You may also be interested in these supports: Visual Support Starter Set  Visual Supports Facebook Group Autism Little Learners on Instagram Autism Little Learners on Facebook

Lyssa Rome is a speech-language pathologist in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is on staff at the Aphasia Center of California, where she facilitates groups for people with aphasia and their care partners. She owns an LPAA-focused private practice and specializes in working with people with neurogenic communication disorders. She has worked in acute hospital, skilled nursing, and continuum of care settings. Prior to becoming an SLP, Lyssa was a public radio journalist, editor, and podcast producer. In this episode, Lyssa Rome interviews Liz Hoover about group treatment for aphasia.   Guest info Dr. Liz Hoover is a clinical professor of speech language and hearing sciences and the clinical director of the Aphasia Resource Center at Boston University. She holds board certification from the Academy of Neurologic Communication Disorders and Sciences, or ANCDS, and is an ASHA fellow. She was selected as a 2024 Tavistock Trust for Aphasia Distinguished Scholar, USA and Canada. Liz was a founding member of Aphasia Access and served on the board for several years. She has 30 years of experience working with people with aphasia and other communication disorders across the continuum of care. She's contributed to numerous presentations and publications, and most of her work focuses on the effectiveness of group treatment for individuals with aphasia.   Listener Take-aways In today's episode you will: Describe the evidence supporting aphasia conversation groups as an effective interventions for linguistic and psychosocial outcomes. Differentiate the potential benefits of dyads versus larger groups in relation to client goals. Identify how aphasia severity and group composition can influence treatment outcomes.   Edited transcript Lyssa Rome Welcome to the Aphasia Access Aphasia Conversations Podcast. I'm Lyssa Rome. I'm a speech language pathologist on staff at the Aphasia Center of California and I see clients with aphasia and other neurogenic communication disorders in my LPAA-focused private practice. I'm also a member of the Aphasia Access Podcast Working Group. Aphasia Access strives to provide members with information, inspiration and ideas that support their aphasia care through a variety of educational materials and resources.   I'm today's host for an episode that will feature Dr. Elizabeth Hoover, who was selected as a 2024 Tavistock Trust for Aphasia Distinguished Scholar, USA and Canada.   Liz Hoover is a clinical professor of speech language and hearing sciences and the clinical director of the Aphasia Resource Center at Boston University. She holds board certification from the Academy of Neurologic Communication Disorders and Sciences, or ANCDS, and is an ASHA fellow. Liz was a founding member of Aphasia Access and served on the board for several years. She has 30 years of experience working with people with aphasia and other communication disorders across the continuum of care. She's contributed to numerous presentations and publications, and most of her work focuses on the effectiveness of group treatment for individuals with aphasia. Liz, welcome back to the podcast.   So in 2017 you spoke with Ellen Bernstein Ellis about intensive comprehensive aphasia programs or ICAPs and inter professional practice at the Aphasia Resource Center at BU and treatment for verb production using VNest, among other topics. So this time, I thought we could focus on some of your recent research with Gayle DeDe and others on conversation group treatment.   Liz Hoover Sounds good.   Lyssa Rome All right, so my first question is how you became interested in studying group treatment?   Liz Hoover Yeah, I actually have Dr. Jan Avent to thank for my interest in groups. She was my aphasia professor when I was a graduate student doing my masters at Cal State East Bay. As you know, Cal State East Bay is home to the Aphasia Treatment Program. When I was there, it preceded ATP. But I was involved in her cooperative group treatment study, and as a graduate student, I was allowed to facilitate some of her groups in this study, and I was involved in the moderate-to-severe group. She was also incredibly generous at sharing that very early body of work for socially oriented group treatments and exposing us to the work of John Lyons and Audrey Holland. Jan also invited us to go to a conference on group treatment that was run by the Life Link group. It's out of Texas Woman's University, Delaina Walker-Batson and Jean Ford. And it just was a life changing and pivotal experience for me in recognizing how group treatment could not be just an adjunct to individual goals, but actually be the type of treatment that is beneficial for folks with aphasia. So it's been a love my entire career.   Lyssa Rome And now I know you've been studying group treatment in this randomized control trial. This was a collaborative research project, so I'm hoping you can tell us a little bit more about that project. What were your research questions? Tell us a little bit more.   Liz Hoover Yeah, so thank you. I'll just start by acknowledging that the work is funded by two NIDCD grants, and to acknowledge their generosity, and then also acknowledge Dr. Gayle DeDe, who is currently at Temple University. She is a co- main PI in this work, and of course it wouldn't have happened without her. So you know, Gayle and I have known each other for many, many years. She's a former student, doctoral student at Boston University, and by way of background, she and I were interested in working together and interested in trying to build on some evidence for group treatment. I think we drank the Kool Aid early on, as you might say.   And you know, just looking at the literature, there have been two trials on the evidence for this kind of work. And so those of us who are involved in groups, know that it's helpful for people with aphasia, our clients tell us how much they enjoy it, and they vote with their feet, right? In that they come back for more treatments. And aphasia centers have grown dramatically in the last couple of decades in the United States.   So clearly we know they work, but what we don't know is why they work. What are those essential ingredients, and how is that driving the change that we think we see? And from a personal perspective, that's important for me to understand and for us to have explained in the literature, because until we can justify it in the scientific terms, I worry it will forever be a private-pay adjunct that is only accessible to people who can pay for it, or who are lucky enough to be close enough to a center that can get them access—virtual groups aside, and the advent of that—but it's important that I think this intervention is validated to the scientific community in our field.   So we designed this trial. It's a randomized control trial to help build the research evidence for conversation, group treatment, and to also look at the critical components. This was inspired by a paper actually from Nina Simmons Mackie in 2014 and Linda Worrell. They looked at group treatment and showed that there were at least eight first-tier elements that changed the variability or on which we might modify group conversation treatment. And so, you know, if we're all doing things differently, how can we predict the change, and how can we expect outcomes?   Lyssa Rome So I was hoping you could describe this randomized, controlled trial. You know, it was collaborative, and I'm curious about what you and your collaborators had as your research questions.   Liz Hoover So our primary aims of the study were to understand if communication or conversation treatment is associated with changes in measures of communicative ability and psychosocial measures. So that's a general effectiveness question. And then to look in more deeply to see if the group size or the group composition or even the individual profile of the client with aphasia influences the expected outcome.   Because if you think about group treatment, the size of the group is not an insignificant issue, right? So a small group environment of two people has much more… it still gives you some peer support from the other individual with aphasia, but you have many opportunities for conversational turns and linguistic and communication practice and to drive the saliency of the conversation in a direction that's meaningful and useful and informative.   Whereas in a large group environment of say, six to eight people with aphasia and two clinicians, you might see much more influence in the needed social support and vicarious learning and shared lived experience and so forth, and still have some opportunity for communication and linguistic practice. So there's conflicting hypotheses there about which group environment might be better for one individual over another.   And then there's the question of, well, who's in that group with you? Does that matter? Some of the literature says that if you have somebody with a different profile of aphasia, it can set up a therapeutic benefit of the helper experience, where you can gain purpose by enabling and supporting and being a facilitator of somebody else with aphasia.   But if you're in a group environment where your peers have similar conversation goals as you, maybe your practice turns, and your ability to learn vicariously from their conversation turns is greater. So again, two conflicting theories here about what might be best. So we decided to try and manipulate these group environments and measure outcomes on several different communication measures. We selected measures that were linguistic, functional, and psychosocial.   We collected data over four years. The first two years, we enrolled people with all different kinds of profiles of aphasia. The only inclusion criteria from a communication perspective, as you needed some ability to comprehend at a sentence level, so that you could process what was being said by the other people in the group. And in year one, the treatment was at Boston University and Temple University, which is where Gayle's aphasia center is housed. In year two, we added a community site at the Adler Aphasia Center and Maywood, New Jersey, so we had three sites going.   The treatment conditions were dyad, large group, and then a no treatment group. So this group was tested at the same time, didn't get any other intervention, and then we gave them group treatment once the testing cycle was over. So we call that a historical control or a delayed-treatment control group. And then in years three and four, we aim to enroll people who had homogeneous profiles.   So the first through the third cycle was people with moderate to severe profiles. And then in the final, fourth cycle, it was people with mild profiles with aphasia. This allowed us to collect enough data in enough size to be able to look at overall effectiveness and then effects of heterogeneity or homogeneity in the group, and the influence of the profile of aphasia, as well as the group size.   And across the four years, we aim to enroll 216 participants, and 193 completed the study. So it's the largest of its kind for this particular kind of group treatment that we know of anyway. So this data set has allowed us to look at overall efficacy of conversation group treatment, and then also take a look at a couple of those critical ingredients. Does the size of the group make a difference? And does the composition of your group make a difference?   Lyssa Rome And what did you find?   Liz Hoover Well, we're not quite done with all of our analysis yet, but we found overall that there's a significant treatment effect for just the treatment conditions, not the control group. So whether you were in the dyad or whether you were in a large treatment group, you got better on some of the outcome measures we selected. And the control group not only didn't but on a couple of those measures, their performance actually declined. And so showing significantly that there's a treatment effect. Did you have a question?   Lyssa Rome Yeah, I wanted to interrupt and ask, what were the outcome measures? What outcome measures were you looking at?   Liz Hoover Yeah. So we had about 14 measures in total that aligned with the core outcome set that was established by the ROMA group. So we had as our linguistic measure the Comprehensive Aphasia Test. We had a primary outcome measure, which was a patient reported measure of functional communication, which is the ACOM by Will Hula and colleagues, the Aphasia Communication Outcome measure, we had Audrey Holland and colleagues' objective functional measure, the CADL, and then a series of other psychosocial and patient reported outcome measures, so the wall question from the ALA, the Moss Social Scale, the Communication Confidence Rating Scale in Aphasia by Leora Cherney and Edie Babbitt.   Lyssa Rome Thank you. When I interrupted you to ask about outcome measures. You were telling us about some of the findings so far.   Liz Hoover Yeah, so our primary outcome measures showed significant changes in language for both the treatment conditions and a slightly larger effect for the large group. And then we saw, at a more micro level, the results pointing to a complex interaction, actually, between the group size and the treatment outcome. So we saw changes on more linguistic measures. like the repetition sub scores of the CAT and verb naming from another naming subtest for the dyad group, whereas bigger, more robust changes on the ACOM the CADL and the discourse measure from the CAT for the large group.   And then diving in a little bit more deeply for the composition, these data are actually quite interesting. The papers are in review and preparation at the moment, but it looks like we are seeing significant changes for the moderate-to-severe group on objective functional measures and patient reported functional measures of communication, which is so exciting to see for this particular cohort, whose naming scores were zero, in some cases, on entrance, and we're seeing for the mild group, some changes on auditory comprehension, naming, not surprisingly, and also the ACOM and the CADL. So they're showing the same changes, just with different effect sizes or slightly different ranges. And once again, no change in the control group, and in some cases, on some measures, we're seeing a decline in performance over time.   So it's validating that the intervention is helpful in general. What we found with the homogeneous groups is that in a homogeneous large group environment, those groups seem to do a little better. There's a significant effect over time between the homogeneous and the heterogeneous groups. So thinking about why that might have taken place, we wonder if the shared lived experience of your profile of aphasia, your focus on similar kinds of communication, or linguistic targets within the conversation environment might be helping to offset the limited number of practice trials you get in that larger group environment.   So that's an interesting finding to see these differences in who's in the group with you. Because I think clinically, we tend to assign groups, or sort of schedule groups according to what's convenient for the client, what might be pragmatic for the setting, without really wondering why one group could be important or one group might be preferential. If we think about it, there are conflicting hypotheses as to why a group of your like aphasia severity might have a different outcome, right? That idea that you can help people who have a different profile than you, that you're sharing different kinds of models of communication, versus that perhaps more intense practice effect when you share more specific goals and targets and lived experiences. So it's interesting to think about the group environment from that perspective, I think,   Lyssa Rome And to have also some evidence that clinicians and people at aphasia centers can look to help make decisions about group compositions, I think is incredibly helpful.   Earlier, you mentioned that one of the goals of this research project has been to identify the active ingredients of group therapy. And I know that you've been part of a working group for the Rehabilitation Treatment Specification System, or RTSS. Applying that, how have you tried to identify the active ingredients and what? What do you think it is about these treatments that actually drives change?   Liz Hoover I'll first of all say, this is a work in process. You know, I don't think we've got all of the answers. We're just starting to think about it with the idea, again, that if we clinically decide to make some changes to our group, we're at least doing it with some information behind us, and it's a thoughtful and intentional change, as opposed to a gut reaction or a happenstance change. So Gayle and I have worked on developing this image, or this model. It's in a couple of our papers. We can share the resources for that. But it's about trying to think of the flow of communication, group treatment, and what aspects of the treatment might be influential in the outcomes we see downstream.   I think for group treatment, you can't separate entirely many of the ingredients. Group treatment is multifaceted, it's interconnected, and it's not possible—I would heavily debate that with anybody—I don't think it's possible to sort of truly separate some of these ingredients. But when you alter the composition or the environment in which you do the treatment, I do think we are influencing the relative weight of these ingredients.   So we've been thinking about there being this group dynamics component, which is the supportive environment of the peers in the group with you, that social support, the insider affiliation and shared lived experience, the opportunity to observe and see the success of some of these different communication strategies, so that vicarious learning that takes place as you see somebody else practice. But also, I think, cope in a trajectory of your treatment process.   And then we've got linguistic practice so that turn taking where you're actually trying to communicate verbally using supported communication where you're expanding on your utterances or trying to communicate verbally in a specific way or process particular kinds of linguistic targets. A then communication practice in terms of that multimodal effectiveness of communication.   And these then are linked to these three ingredients, dynamic group dynamics, linguistic practice and communication practice. They each have their own mechanism of action or a treatment theory that explains how they might affect change. So for linguistic practice, it's the amount of practice, but also how you hear it practiced or see it practiced with the other group participant. And the same thing for the various multimodal communication acts. And in thinking about a large group versus the dyad or a small group, you know you've got this conflicting hypothesis or the setup for a competing best group, or benefit in that the large group will influence more broadly in the group dynamics, or more deeply in the group dynamics, in that there's a much bigger opportunity to see the vicarious learning and experience the support and potentially experience the communication practice, given a varied number of participants.   But yet in the dyad, your opportunity for linguistic practice is much, much stronger. And our work has counted this the exponential number of turns you get in a dyad versus a large group. And you know, I think that's why the results we saw with the dyad on those linguistic outcomes were unique to that group environment.   Lyssa Rome It points, I think, to the complexity of decision making around group structure and what's right for which client, maybe even so it sounds like some of that work is still in progress. I'm curious about sort of thinking about what you know so far based on this work, what advice would you have for clinicians who are working in aphasia centers or or helping to sort of think about the structure of group treatments? What should clinicians in those roles keep in mind?   Liz Hoover Yeah, that's a great question, and I'll add the caveat that this may change. My advice for this may change in a year's time, or it might evolve as we learn more. But I think what it means is that the decisions you make should be thoughtful. We're starting to learn more about severity in aphasia and how that influences the outcomes. So I think, what is it that your client wants to get out of the group? If they're interested in more linguistic changes, then perhaps the dyad is a better place to start. If they clearly need, or are voicing the need, for more psychosocial support, then the large, you know, traditional sized and perhaps a homogeneous group is the right place to start. But they're both more effective than no treatment. And so being, there's no wrong answer. It's just understanding your client's needs. Is there a better fit?   And I think that's, that's, that's my wish, that people don't see conversation as something that you do at the beginning to build a rapport, but that it's worthy of being an intervention target. It should be most people's primary goal. I think, right, when we ask, what is it you'd like? “I want to talk more. I want to have a conversation.” Audrey Holland would say it's a moral imperative to to treat the conversation and to listen to folks' stories. So just to think carefully about what it is your client wants to achieve, and if there's an environment in which that might be easier to help them achieve that.   Lyssa Rome It's interesting, as you were saying that I was thinking about what you said earlier on about sort of convincing funders about the value of group treatment, but what you're saying now makes me think that it's all your work is also valuable in convincing speech therapists that referrals to groups or dyads is valuable and and also for people with aphasia and their families that it's worth seeking out.   I'm curious about where in the continuum of care this started for the people who were in your trial. I mean, were these people with chronic aphasia who had had strokes years earlier? Was it a mix? And did that make a difference?   Liz Hoover It was a mix. I think our earliest participant was six months post-onset. Our most chronic participant was 26 years post-onset. So a wide range. We want, obviously, from a study perspective, we needed folks to be outside of the traditional window of spontaneous recovery in stroke-induced aphasia.   But it was important to us to have a treatment dose that was reasonable and applicable to a United States healthcare climate, right? So twice a week for an hour is something that people would get reimbursed for. The overall dose is the minimum that's been shown to be effective in the RELEASE collaborative trial papers. And then, you know, but still, half, less than half the dose that the Elman and Bernstein Ellis study found to be effective. So there may be some wiggle room there to see if, if a larger dose is more effective.   But yeah, I think it's that idea of finding funding, convincing people that this is not just a reasonable treatment approach, but a good approach for many outcomes for people with chronic aphasia. I mean, you know, one of the biggest criticisms we hear from the giants in our field is the frustration with aphasia being treated like it's a quick fix and can be done. But you know, so much of the work shows that people are only just beginning to understand their condition by the time they're discharged from traditional outpatient services. And so there's a need for ongoing treatment indefinitely, I think, as your goals change, as you age, and as your wish to participate in different things changes over a lifetime,   Lyssa Rome Yeah, absolutely. And I think too, when we think about sort of the role of hope, if you know, if there is additional evidence showing that there can be change after that sort of traditional initial period, when we think that change happens the most, that can provide a lot of hope and motivation, I think, to people.   Liz Hoover yeah, we're look going to be looking next at predictors of change, so looking at our study entrance scores and trying to identify which participants were the responders versus the non-responders that you know, because group effects are one thing, but it's good to see who seems to benefit the most from these individual types of environments.   And an early finding is that confidence, or what some people in the field, I'm learning now are referring to as actually communication self-efficacy, but that previous exposure to group potentially and that confidence in your communication is inversely correlated with benefits from treatment on other measures. So if you've got a low confidence in your ability to communicate functionally in different environments, you're predicted to be a responder to conversation treatment.   Lyssa Rome Oh, that's really interesting. What else are you looking forward to working on when it comes to this data set or other projects that you have going on?   Liz Hoover Yeah. So as I mentioned, there's a lot of data still for us to dig into, looking at those individual responders or which factors or variables might make an impact. There is the very next on the list, we're also going to be looking very shortly at the dialogic conversation outcomes. So, it's a conversation treatment. How has conversation changed? That's a question we need to answer. So we're looking at that currently, and might look more closely at other measures. And then I think the question of the dose is an interesting one. The question of how individual variables or the saliency of the group may impact change is another potentially interesting question. There are many different directions you can go.   You know, we've got 193 participants in the study, with three separate testing time points, so it's a lot of data to look at still. And I think we want to be sure we understand what we're looking at, and what those active ingredients might be, that we've got the constructs well defined before we start to recruit for another study and to expand on these findings further.   Lyssa Rome When we were meeting earlier, getting ready for this talk, you mentioned to me a really valuable video resource, and I wanted to make sure we take some time to highlight that. Can you tell us a little bit about what you worked on with your colleagues at Boston University?   Liz Hoover Yes, thank you. So I'll tell you a little bit. We have a video education series. Some of you may have heard about this already, but it's up on our website so bu.edu/aphasiacenter, and we'll still share that link as well. And it's a series of short, aphasia-friendly videos that are curated by our community to give advice and share lived experiences from people with aphasia and their care partners.   This project came about right on the heels of the COVID shutdown at our university. I am involved in our diagnostic clinic, and I was seeing folks who had been in acute care through COVID being treated with people who were wearing masks, who had incredibly shortened lengths of stay because people you know rightly, were trying to get them out of a potentially vulnerable environment. And what we were seeing is a newly diagnosed cohort of people with aphasia who were so under-informed about their condition, and Nina that has a famous quote right of the public being woefully uninformed of the aphasia condition and you don't think it can get any worse until It does.   And I thought, gosh, wouldn't it be wonderful to be able to point them to some short education videos that are by people who have lived their same journey or a version of their same journey. So we fundraised and collaborated with a local production company to come up with these videos. And I'll share, Lyssa, we just learned last week that this video series has been awarded the ASHA 2025 Media Outreach Award. So it's an award winning series.   Lyssa Rome Yeah, that's fantastic, and it's so well deserved. They're really beautifully and professionally produced. And I think I really appreciated hearing from so many different people with aphasia about their experiences as the condition is sort of explained more. So thank you for sharing those and we'll put the links in our show notes along with links to the other articles that you've mentioned in this conversation in our show notes. So thanks.   Liz Hoover Yeah, and I'll just put a big shout out to my colleague, Jerry Kaplan, who's the amazing interviewer and facilitator in many of these videos, and the production company, which is Midnight Brunch. But again, the cinematography and the lighting. They're beautifully done. I think I'm very, very happy with them.   Lyssa Rome Yeah, congrats again on the award too. So to wrap up, I'm wondering if there's anything else that you want listeners to take away from this conversation or from the work that you've been doing on conversation treatments.   Liz Hoover I would just say that I would encourage everybody to try group treatment. It's a wonderful option for intervention for people, and to remind everyone of Barbara Shadden and Katie Strong's work, of that embedded storytelling that can come out in conversation, and of the wonderful Audrey Holland's words, of it being a moral imperative to help people tell their story and to converse. It's yeah… You'll drink the Kool Aid if you try it. Let me just put it that way. It's a wonderful intervention that seems to be meaningful for most clients I've ever had the privilege to work with.   Lyssa Rome I agree with that. And meaningful too, I think for clinicians who get to do the work.   Liz Hoover, thank you so much for your work and for coming to talk with us again, for making your second appearance on the podcast. It's been great talking with you.   Liz Hoover Thank you. It's been fun. I appreciate it.   Lyssa Rome And thanks also to our listeners for the references and resources mentioned in today's show. Please see our show notes. They're available on our website, www.aphasiaaccess.org. There, you can also become a member of our organization, browse our growing library of materials and find out about the Aphasia Access Academy. If you have an idea for a future podcast episode, email us at info@aphasia access.org.   Thanks again for your ongoing support of Aphasia Access. For Aphasia Access Conversations. I'm Lyssa Rome.       Resources Walker-Batson, D., Curtis, S., Smith, P., & Ford, J. (1999). An alternative model for the treatment of aphasia: The Lifelink© approach. In R. Elman (Ed.), Group treatment for neurogenic communication disorders: The expert clinician's approach (pp. 67-75). Woburn, MA: Butterworth-Heinemann   Hoover, E.L., DeDe, G., Maas, E. (2021). A randomized controlled trial of the effects of group conversation treatment on monologic discourse in aphasia. Journal of Speech-Language and Hearing Research doi/10.1044/2021_JSLHR-21-00023 Hoover, E., Szabo, G., Kohen, F., Vitale, S., McCloskey, N., Maas, E., Kularni, V., & DeDe., G. (2025). The benefits of conversation group treatment for individuals with chronic aphasia: Updated evidence from a multisite randomized controlled trial on measures of language and communication. American Journal of Speech Language Pathology. DOI: 10.1044/2025_AJSLP-24-00279   Aphasia Resource Center at BU   Living with Aphasia video series Aphasia Access Podcast Episode #15: In Conversation with Liz Hoover

Ep 336: Feeding Therapy in Schools: Safety, Culture, and Collaboration with Karen HowarthIn this episode, Hallie Bulkin interviews Karen Howarth, a pediatric occupational therapist with 25 years of experience — and our new resident OT mentor inside Feed The Peds®.They dive into Karen's work in feeding therapy within school settings, including the development of the MEALS screening tool, the unique challenges of providing feeding therapy in schools, and the importance of a multidisciplinary approach.Karen also highlights the need for cultural sensitivity in feeding practices, shares strategies for supporting parents through feelings of guilt, and discusses how feeding challenges can impact a child's educational experience. She explains how collaboration with school staff ensures children's safety and access to nutrition during the school day.In this episode, you'll learn:✔️The MEALS screening tool addresses mealtime challenges in schools.✔️Engagement in mealtime is as important as physical feeding skills.✔️School-based feeding therapy requires a multidisciplinary approach.✔️Cultural sensitivity is crucial in addressing feeding practices.✔️Parents often experience guilt regarding their child's feeding difficulties.✔️Educational impact is a key consideration in IEPs.✔️Collaboration with school staff is essential for effective feeding interventionsRELATED EPISODES YOU MIGHT LOVEEpisode 286: It's Not Your Fault with Hallie Bulkin, MA CCC-SLP, CMT®, CPFT™ Episode 318: Feed The Peds®: The Mission with Hallie Bulkin, MA CCC-SLP, CMT®, CPFT™✨ FREE TRAINING ALERT – HAPPENING SEPTEMBER 8–10!If you're an SLP, OT, or student… you need to join me for the FREE 3-Day Pediatric Feeding Screening Training. Over 34,000 of your colleagues have done it — now it's your turn!Here's what you'll get when you sign up:4 hours on a certificate of completion (perfect for your renewal hours)My complete pediatric feeding screening packet — development chart, 50-symptom checklist, findings chart & referral formA chance to win a full scholarship to the 12-week Feed The Peds® courseGrab your spot here → www.feedthepeds.com/trainingOTHER WAYS TO CONNECT & LEARN

Hallie chats with Angelina Loia about vocational initiatives for students with special needs and complex needs and the use of AAC in collaborative platforms.This week on the pod, we're joined by Angelina Loia, MA, CCC-SLP, TSSLD — a NYC-based SLP with 20+ years of experience in District 75!

In this powerful episode, Kelly Hine opens up about her extraordinary life journey from growing up in a strict religious sect in Perth to becoming a teacher, world traveller, meditation leader, and women's empowerment coach. Kelly shares with Kim what it was like to live between “two worlds”, her school life and her church community,… Continue reading SLP 512: From Perfection to Finding Soul Space with Kelly Hine The post SLP 512: From Perfection to Finding Soul Space with Kelly Hine appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

What happens when a passionate SLP flies to Hawaii to train a hospital team in FEES—and ends up learning just as much as she teaches? In this episode, Theresa shares the powerful, behind-the-scenes story of a multi-day FEES training in a hospital system. From the logistics (yes, including rolled up manila folders) to the deeply human moments (like helping a burn patient eat for the first time in months), you'll hear exactly what it takes to build confident, compassionate FEES providers—without throwing anyone to the wolves. This isn't just about technique. It's about mindset. Mentorship. The language we use. The space we create. And the incredible ripple effect it all has on patient care. Whether you're a seasoned FEES mentor or considering your very first pass, this story-driven episode will leave you inspired, empowered, and maybe even a little teary-eyed (in the best way). Listen to the full episode at: https://syppodcast.com/374 Follow Theresa: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theresarichardslp Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheresaRichardMedicalSLP Subscribe to LinkedIn Newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/6925225047716499457/ The post 374 – Building Confidence in FEES: The Key to Successful Swallowing Assessments appeared first on Swallow Your Pride Podcast.

Is telepractice just as effective as in-person therapy for treating speech sound disorders? In this episode, we take a realistic, research-driven look at what the evidence really says about speech telepractice—and what factors determine whether it works. You'll discover: The exact client profiles that are NOT a good fit for telepractice. The active ingredients that make telepractice sessions as effective as in-person therapy. Why dose isn't just about reps—and how complex targets create massive gains. Brand-new research on final clusters and how to apply it in therapy. The key role of caregivers as co-therapists in virtual sessions. If you're a school-based SLP, private practitioner, or just considering telepractice, this episode will help you deliver high-impact, evidence-based therapy online—while avoiding the pitfalls.

Guests: Jennifer Eggert and Dawn Merth-JohnsonEarn 0.1 ASHA CEU for this episode with Speech Therapy PD: https://www.speechtherapypd.com/courses/lessons-from-wisconsonDo you dream about working with pediatric feeding disorders in the public schools, but aren't sure where to begin? Or, have you recently been asked to do so and are truly hesitant to start? Well, if you answered "Yes" to either one of those scenarios, then don't fret, because "First Bite" has you covered, thanks to the "forward-thinking" of leaders in Wisconsin. So, be inspired by your SLP colleagues Jennifer Eggert and Dawn Merth-Johnson, as they share the dynamic interprofessional practice team they built at the Wisconsin state level, the systematic steps they took during the 2024-2025 school year to implement the initial evaluation and treatment of pediatric feeding disorder protocols, and how they plan to engage in implementation science to tweak and grow for the 2025 -2026 school year. By the end of this hour, you will have functional steps to start in your district/state, too!Guests: Jennifer Eggert, MS, CCC-SLP, C/NDT, has dedicated her entire career to providing evaluation and treatment for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and school-age children with a range of congenital and acquired diagnoses. Jennifer's focus has consistently been in the area of oral-motor and feeding disorders. She has served for 20 years as an instructor in the University of Wisconsin system and at Marquette University, teaching a variety of undergraduate and graduate-level courses, in addition to providing both on- and off-campus student supervision. Jennifer is the outgoing president of the Wisconsin Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Association (WSHA).Dawn Merth-Johnson, MA, CCC-SLP, is an Education Consultant for the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, specializing in speech-language services and assistive technology. She brings 29 years of clinical and supervisory experience across various settings, including schools, long-term rehabilitation facilities, state agencies, and university programs. Dawn presents at both state and national conferences on topics related to leadership, advocacy, and clinical practice. She serves as Wisconsin's ASHA Co-State Education Advocacy Leader (Co-SEAL) and is the ASHA SEAL Champion for the Midwest region.

Why do so many SLPs feel broke — even with a steady paycheck? It's not just bad budgeting, and it's definitely not just you. In this video, I break down the real reasons speech-language pathologists struggle financially, from student loans to hidden work expenses to the financial traps our profession doesn't warn us about.Whether you're a school-based SLP, in private practice, or working per diem, you'll learn: ✅ The 3 biggest money drains for SLPs ✅ Why “good pay” isn't enough to build financial stability ✅ Simple steps to stop feeling broke and start building wealth

This week Kim dives into the magic of herbs and spices. She shares the benefits from basil and parsley to turmeric, cinnamon, and mint and how they've been treasured through history for both healing and flavour. She invites you to see your own kitchen as a little apothecary of self love and reminds us how… Continue reading SLP 511: Self Love Quicky – Herbs, Spices & Self Love The post SLP 511: Self Love Quicky – Herbs, Spices & Self Love appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

Is this intervention going to make a client's world bigger?That's the guiding question for today's guest, Cindy Mrotek, BCBA and LBS, founder of a.c.e therapies—a center offering Speech, OT, and ABA services, along with options for adult learners. With three locations across Illinois, a.c.e therapies focuses on skills that truly matter across the lifespan.In our conversation, Cindy shares why focusing on meaningful skills and goals is so important for increasing quality of life and “making the world bigger” for learners and their families. Without access to leisure skills and other essential life skills, a learner's world can feel very small—and that impact extends to their loved ones too.Cindy also highlights the unique benefits of a multidisciplinary clinic, where collaboration across disciplines creates a holistic approach to building a better life, rather than working on skills in isolation. As a clinician-owned center, she may not compete with private equity on pay or scale, but she offers something different: collaboration, flexibility, and an individualized, learner-centered model that supports both therapists and families.#autism #speechtherapyWhat's Inside:Setting goals critical to the lifespan.The importance of Adult Services in clinics.A widespread value in a multidisciplinary clinic. Mentioned In This Episode:a.c.e. Therapiesa.c.e. therapies (@acetherapies_) on InstagramCindy Dougherty-Mrotek on LinkedInSpeech Membership - ABA Speech  ABA Speech: Home

From the outside, you look fine. Maybe you're the SLP who's always polished, always on time, always hitting deadlines. Or maybe you're the one quietly behind — reports late, notes piled up, emails unanswered — but still working hard to appear as if you've got it together.Either way? It's exhausting. And it's what we call masking.In this episode, I'm pulling back the curtain on the hidden burnout so many SLPs are carrying — whether you're overachieving to keep up appearances or working overtime just to look like you're keeping up.Here's what we'll cover:Two of the most common faces of masking for SLPs (and why both are unsustainable)Why masking feels safer in the moment, but silently drains your energy and confidenceThe overlap between ADHD, executive dysfunction, and masking in professional lifeHow to recognize the gap between what people see and what you're actually experiencingPractical ways to loosen the mask and reclaim authenticity — without shame and without burning everything downIf you've ever thought things like, “They think I'm doing great… but if they only knew...” or "How is it that everyone else can keep up and I'm over here drowning..." this episode is for you. You are not alone, and you don't have to keep pushing through silently.

Ep 335: The #1 Way to Transform Your Pediatric Feeding EvaluationsIn this episode of The Untethered Podcast, Hallie Bulkin reveals why a truly effective pediatric feeding evaluation starts long before the child walks into the room. She shares how well-designed intake forms with targeted, specific questions unlock critical insights into a child's feeding behaviors and highlight red flags that might otherwise be missed.In this episode, you'll learn:✔️ Why the best feeding evaluations actually start before the child arrives, using detailed intake forms.✔️ Three simple questions that uncover posture problems, long meal times, and noisy eating — all key red flags.✔️ How hip alignment connects to oral motor function (“What we see on the hips, we see on the lips”).✔️ Why feeding challenges rarely exist in isolation and are often tied to sensory and developmental factors.✔️ How to spot red flags and conduct an effective screening even without watching a child eat.✔️ How to join Hallie's free 3-day live training for deeper, practical evaluation tools.RELATED EPISODES YOU MIGHT LOVEEpisode 319: Elevate Your Practice with the Pediatric Feeding Hub, Hallie Bulkin, MA CCC-SLP, CMT®, CPFT™ Ep 309: 5 Airway Health Tips for Children with Hallie Bulkin, MA, CCC-SLP, CMT✨ FREE TRAINING ALERT – HAPPENING SEPTEMBER 8–10!If you're an SLP, OT, or student… you need to join me for the FREE 3-Day Pediatric Feeding Screening Training. Over 34,000 of your colleagues have done it — now it's your turn!Here's what you'll get when you sign up:4 hours on a certificate of completion (perfect for your renewal hours)My complete pediatric feeding screening packet — development chart, 50-symptom checklist, findings chart & referral formA chance to win a full scholarship to the 12-week Feed The Peds® courseGrab your spot here → www.feedthepeds.com/trainingOTHER WAYS TO CONNECT & LEARN

We have all been there and it feels impossible. Hallie talks about how to manage a large caseload.This week on SLP Coffee Talk, Hallie is diving into a topic that every school-based SLP with a mile-long caseload needs—how to manage it all without burning the midnight oil. ☕

Cait Gannon is a dedicated and passionate medical speech-language pathologist. Cait earned her graduate degree in Speech Language Pathology from UMass Amherst, and since then, she's been on a mission to support individuals across the lifespan in finding their voice—literally and figuratively. She's volunteered with Healing Harmonies, a remarkable choir made up of adults with neurological conditions, bringing the power of music and community to the forefront of healing. She's also worked with REACH Early Intervention, helping our youngest clients build strong foundations for communication. Currently, Cait is part of the rehab team at Baystate Franklin Medical Center, where she works with voice clients and patients navigating cognitive impairments following strokes and brain injuries. Today, she's here to share her insights into the world of medical SLP—what it's like to support patients through some of their most vulnerable moments, the challenges and rewards of working in a rehab setting, and how voice and cognition intersect in powerful, life-changing ways.........................................⭐️ Help us grow by subscribing and rating our podcast on any platform (don't forget to leave a 5 ⭐️ review)❤️ ⁠Support our podcast⁠

In this episode, Kim sits with Luka Kovacevic to explore his remarkable journey from a war-torn childhood in Croatia to building a life of freedom, family, and business success in Australia. Luka shares vivid memories of the Balkan War, his family's migration, and the contrast of discovering freedom as a child in Australia. He talks… Continue reading SLP 510: The Power of Resilience: From War to Freedom with Luka Kovacevic The post SLP 510: The Power of Resilience: From War to Freedom with Luka Kovacevic appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

After an unexpected summer hiatus, we're back with a solo episode that's part update, part confession, and 100% from the heart. In this deeply personal kickoff to the new season, Theresa opens up about a professional ego check she didn't see coming—one that hit close to home.As a board-certified swallowing specialist, choosing a feeding tube for my own son was never part of the plan. But what started as a tough decision turned into something surprisingly beautiful: freedom, nourishment, and a whole lot of learning.In this episode, Theresa Richard shares the behind-the-scenes updates on her dissertation, the MSLP-C™ Certification accreditation, exciting changes in the MedSLP Collective—and the very real parenting moments that led her to a new understanding of what feeding success can look like.Whether you're a med SLP, a parent, or someone navigating what it means to truly support patients and families, this episode is for you. Join the MedSLP Collective: https://medslpcollective.com/ Find out. more about the MSLP-C™ Certification Program: https://medslped.com/certification The post 373 – From Board-Certified in Swallowing… to Getting a Feeding Tube for My Son appeared first on Swallow Your Pride Podcast.

Reubican a maestros en SLP por falta de alumnos Entregan certificación “Hecho en México” a 16 tequileras  EU duplica aranceles a los productos indios 

In this episode, we celebrate the incredible role of mothers and how essential oils can become a powerful Mumma Bear toolkit in the home. From soothing first-aid remedies and gentle sleep rituals to immune support and emotional care, discover the science behind these plant allies and how to use them safely with children. With practical… Continue reading SLP 509: Self Love Quicky – Essential Oils and Motherhood The post SLP 509: Self Love Quicky – Essential Oils and Motherhood appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

En mas informacion: Lenia Batres buscará la marca “Ministra del Pueblo” en juicio administrativo contra IMPI, UNAM asevera que 200 mil estudiantes de bachillerato no ingresan a la universidad, México solicita a Brasil incluir a la Gran Selva Maya en fondo para bosques tropicales, Persiste plaga de chinches y otros insectos en clínica del ISSSTE en SLP. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, I'm joined by returning guest Lacee Johnson—a school-based SLP. We dive into how she transformed her referral process from post-it note chaos to a streamlined, brain-friendly system using the Workload feature in SLP Now.You'll hear:→ What her referral process used to look like (and why it wasn't working)→ How she customized a task list that actually fits her district's workflow→ Real talk about cognitive load, parent communication, and keeping it all straightWhether you're a CF or a seasoned SLP, you'll walk away with ideas to make your own referral process more manageable and way less stressful.

Do you feel like most CEUs aren't very beneficial? You're not alone—60% of my audience across the field feels the same way.That's why I created The ABA Speech Connection CEU Membership—a program designed to foster collaboration, provide access to current research, and deliver engaging, practical CEUs that actually help you support your learners in communicating with the world.ABA Speech Connection is both ASHA and ACE approved, with a strong focus on meaningful outcomes. Since launching, more than 500 professionals have joined. Each month, members can attend at least one live course (often more) and access our growing catalog of CEUs. Whether you're an SLP, RBT, or BCBA, you'll find everything you need to earn your continuing education in one place.Membership is just $25 per month or $247 per year, with group pricing available as well.What's Inside:ASHA and ACE approved CEUs.A space for collaboration for SLPs, RBTs, and BCBAs. Mentioned In This Episode:Speech Membership - ABA Speech  ABA Speech: Home

SLP malpractice insurance without ASHA Membership (or the CCC), fact or fiction? In this Fix SLP Summer School episode, Dr. Jeanette Benigas, SLP, and Preston Lewis, MS/SLP, discuss affordable liability coverage options for licensed SLPs who choose not to maintain ASHA membership or the CCC. They explain the ProLiability/AMBA partnership, why it's not your only option, what policies and riders are important (malpractice, general liability, E&O, license defense), and how to shop smart for rates that fit your risk and setting.Plus: our first sponsor, ⭐️ Remedy ⭐️, an EMR built by SLPs, offering early access with 50% off your first two months. Check them out! PLUS, a quick Michigan update: Health Policy Committee vote scheduled for HB 4484.New here? Subscribe, share with a colleague, and call the Minivan Meltdown line at fixslp.com to add your voice.

Ep 334: Bye-Bye Thumb! Myo & Airway Strategies to Break the Habit - for GoodIn this episode of The Untethered Podcast™, Hallie Bulkin explores the complexities of thumb sucking in children, emphasizing that it is often a symptom of deeper issues such as airway obstruction and oral dysfunction. She discusses the importance of understanding the underlying causes of thumb sucking, the role of airway health, and the need for holistic approaches to treatment. Hallie provides insights into effective strategies for addressing thumb sucking, including the use of therapeutic tools and the significance of early intervention. The conversation highlights the necessity of treating the whole child rather than just the symptom, advocating for a comprehensive understanding of pediatric health.If this episode resonates with you, snap a screenshot of you listening and share it on your Instagram Stories! Tag Hallie @halliebulkin to spread the word.In this episode, you'll learn:✔️ Understanding Thumb Sucking: A Deeper Look✔️ Addressing Airway Issues: The Root Cause✔️ Strategies for Healthy Self-RegulationRELATED EPISODES YOU MIGHT LOVEEpisode 320: Understanding the Impact of Oral Restrictions on Growth and Development with Dr. Annie Babb, DDSEp 309: 5 Airway Health Tips for Children with Hallie Bulkin, MA, CCC-SLP, CMT✨ FREE TRAINING ALERT – HAPPENING SEPTEMBER 8–10!If you're an SLP, OT, or student… you need to join me for the FREE 3-Day Pediatric Feeding Screening Training. Over 34,000 of your colleagues have done it — now it's your turn!Here's what you'll get when you sign up:4 hours on a certificate of completion (perfect for your renewal hours)My complete pediatric feeding screening packet — development chart, 50-symptom checklist, findings chart & referral formA chance to win one of FOUR full scholarships to the 12-week Feed The Peds® courseGrab your spot here → www.feedthepeds.com/trainingOTHER WAYS TO CONNECT & LEARN

Dr. Erin Michaud, SLP and BCBA-D with over 20 years of experience in communication development and ABA, joins the podcast to share the groundbreaking work of The Early Markers of Autism Project—a program changing the landscape of early autism identification and intervention.This hands-on, in-person research and treatment study works with infants from both high-risk populations (siblings of children with autism, with a 20% recurrence rate) and low-risk populations. By tracking social interaction, shifting attention, joint attention, and social behaviors from infancy through age five, the project identifies and responds to early markers far earlier than the current AAP screening recommendation of 18 months.The impact? Earlier diagnoses, earlier interventions, and fewer families waiting for services. Dr. Michaud shares how this project is creating validated assessment tools, expanding parent training, and building strong research to push for insurance coverage—bringing meaningful change for high-risk infants and their families.#autism #speechtherapyWhat's Inside:What are the early markers of autism?What is the Autism Sibling Project?Supporting parents and our littlest learners.Mentioned In This Episode:Talking First Words — Coming Soon ​​Early Markers of Autism Project | The New England Center for Children7 Investigates: Autism Intervention - Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7NewsNECC Infant Sibling Research Project 2023 Speech Membership - ABA Speech  ABA Speech: HomeThe BriefAll your family's pressing concerns and questions, answered in one place. Mike...Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

In this special two-part series we're tackling one of the biggest challenges many parents and educators face—potty training autistic children. I'll be sharing compassionate, practical strategies that take into account sensory differences, communication needs, and interoception, so you can feel more confident guiding your autistic child or students. Whether you're just getting started or stuck somewhere in the process, this series will give you the tools and encouragement you need. Takeaways Potty training autistic children is not a sprint—it's a marathon (or at least a half-marathon). Progress looks different for every child. Sensory sensitivities, interoception challenges, and communication differences are three of the biggest reasons potty training can be harder for autistic kids. Collecting baseline data (when accidents happen, how often they go) helps you build a roadmap for success. Making the bathroom inviting and sensory-friendly is a first step—soft lighting, calming colors, and incorporating favorite characters can reduce anxiety. Visual supports (bathroom symbols, step-by-step sequences, cue cards) build predictability and reduce uncertainty. Exposure without pressure is key—start with goals like entering the bathroom or sitting on the toilet fully clothed. Modeling helps—siblings, parents, dolls, or stuffed animals can demonstrate potty routines in a playful way. Social stories provide a predictable narrative that prepares children for what happens during potty time. Imitation skills (like copying silly faces or clapping) build the foundation for imitating potty routines later. Avoid common pitfalls: don't put kids on the toilet every 10 minutes, don't force long, stressful sits, and don't expect “3-day training” timelines to work for every child. Resources & Links: Free Potty Training Guide: www.autismlittlelearners.com/toilet Potty Training Course: www.autismlittlelearners.com/pottycourse Potty Training List In Tara's Amazon Shop: https://amzn.to/45TD6lX    

Burnout is hitting SLPs earlier and harder, especially as caseloads and productivity rise. Dr. Jeanette Benigas, SLP, is joined by Fix SLP's Mikayla Treynor, MA/SLP, to chat about what burnout really is (per WHO), how high caseloads and rising productivity targets fuel it, and how to tell burnout from simple under‑stimulation. They share practical strategies you can use now: set enforceable boundaries, stop unpaid paperwork, try micro‑breaks, prioritize real rest, use therapy as a tool, track wins, choose CEUs that actually energize you, and connect with peers. They also zoom out to system‑level solutions such as workload models, employer education, and advocacy that make your day‑to‑day job better. If you're a school or medical SLP feeling stretched thin, this episode gives you tools, language, and a plan to protect your energy and stay in the field you love.

If you've ever experienced the ADHD freeze -- you sit down to write an evaluation report, tackle session notes, or finally make a dent in that load of laundry -- and somehow end up doom-scrolling, spiraling, and doing absolutely nothing productive while the clock keeps ticking—this episode is for you.I'm breaking down what's actually happening when you freeze up and can't seem to get started (spoiler: it's not laziness). Whether have ADHD, suspect you're neurodivergent, or just an overwhelmed SLP, you'll learn why freeze happens and how to start moving again with simple, low-pressure strategies.

In this episode you will discover: Math IS Language - It's in Our Wheelhouse Math has syntax (order of operations), semantics (number meanings), and involves memory and executive function - all areas SLPs already assess and treat. If you can help with language, you have transferable skills for math therapy. Start Simple with What You Have You don't need special materials or extensive math training. Use a deck of cards, dice, and real-life examples like restaurant receipts. Make numbers "friendly" (round $18.72 to $20) and let clients show you multiple ways to solve problems. Address Your Own Math Anxiety First Most SLPs feel uncomfortable with math, but clients need this support for life participation (paying bills, calculating tips, telling time). Acknowledge your discomfort, start with basics you DO know, and remember - if you avoid it, you can't help your clients who want to work on it. If you've ever felt your palms get sweaty when a client asks for help with numbers, this conversation is for you. Welcome to the Aphasia Access Aphasia Conversations Podcast. I'm Katie Strong, a faculty member at Central Michigan University where I lead the Strong Story Lab. I'm today's host for an episode that might just change how you think about math anxiety - both your own and your clients'. We're featuring Tami Brancamp and Dave Brancamp, who are doing pioneering work at the intersection of aphasia and mathematics. Before you hit pause because you're having flashbacks to algebra class, stay with me! This research shows us that the language of math is exactly that - language - which puts it squarely in our wheelhouse as SLPs. We'll explore how to support our clients with aphasia who are struggling with everyday math tasks like counting change, telling time, or balancing a checkbook. And yes, we'll tackle the elephant in the room: addressing our own math insecurities so we can show up confidently for our clients. Let me tell you about our guests. Tami Brancamp is an associate professor at the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine and founder of the Aphasia Center of Nevada. Her research focuses on identity in aphasia and rehabilitating everyday math skills. Dave Brancamp spent over 15 years as a junior high math teacher and later became Director of Standards at the Nevada Department of Education. Together, they co-founded Aphasia + Math, where they're exploring how language and mathematics intersect for people with aphasia. Okay now let's get this Aphasia + Math conversation started! Katie Strong: Tami and Dave, welcome to the podcast. I'm so excited for you to be here today.   Dave Brancamp: Thank you.   Tami Brancamp: We are both super excited to have a chance to talk about things that are different, right?   Katie Strong: Right. I do have to say, I don't know if it was a rash, but I did get a little bit nervous coming into the conversation, because I think I may be one of those SLPs that feel a little bit uncomfortable with math.   Tami Brancamp: Well, this SLP also is uncomfortable with math, so we can be uncomfortable together. And we'll let the math dude guide us through some of the things.   Dave Brancamp: And it will be fun. By the time you're done, I want to see that smile that you have on your face.   Katie Strong: Well, let's jump in and have you share a little bit about how you came to researching aphasia and math.   Tami Brancamp: Well, I have loved working with people who have aphasia since the beginning of my graduate studies. And then probably, like most of us, there's a few clients who've really hit your heart. One of them, I don't recall her name, and that's okay, but she had a stroke, had aphasia. She had had great recover physically, and her language was quite good, some anomia. But she's a banker, and she could not process numbers, and she was angry. I'm a newbie, I didn't understand the emotional piece of stroke survivor, aphasia. can't do my job well. But she was angry, and I felt so helpless. I didn't know what to do to help her. You know, I could pull a workbook off the shelf or something, but it didn't feel right. You know, she could do calculations, but couldn't do her job. And I always felt so very, very helpless over the years.   And the other part that came to start looking at this was teaching in a speech pathology program, undergrad and grad. And in class, maybe we're doing an averaging or something to get a score. I'm not sure if we start talking math, and I would see these students, and their eyes would just like, pop up, like, “Oh my gosh, she's asking me to do math.” And like, deer in the headlights. So I'm like, “What is this?” Every semester, I would do kind of an informal survey when we would do a little bit of math, and I say, “Okay, so how many of you don't do math? Raise your hand or are afraid of math?” And it would be at least two thirds to three quarters of the class every single semester, and I'm like, “Okay, there's something here.” Like, if I'm afraid of math, how am I going to help my clients remediate that in an efficient way? Right? I'm going to avoid it. If I can, I'll go do other things that are important.   So those were, like, the two big things, and then happened to be married to a math dude. And I wondered why are we not combining our skill sets? Because I would come home and I would share with Dave. I'm like “Dave, the majority of my students are afraid to do math or uncomfortable doing math.” And it's not complicated math. We're not talking quadratic equations or things I don't even know what they mean anymore. And we would talk about it a little bit, and we talk about math attitudes and perceptions and how we develop our math skills. And I'm like, “There's something here.”But I was never taught, how do you remediate number processing? Calculations? right? But yet, I would have multiple clients say, “Hey, Tammy, I can't do numbers.” “Yeah, how do I do this?” And there really wasn't anything the literature that told me how to do it. So, I would talk to Dave, and then, just over the years, I'm like, “Okay, we need to do something with this. We really do.” And I don't know what that means, because I'm not most comfortable with math, it is not my passion. We're very opposite. I think I shared like, Dave has math and fun in the same language, and then in the same sentence, I'm like, “they don't go together in my brain.” So we're very, very opposite. But you know, you can speak for yourself how you grew up and you had to learn how to embrace math, and having good teachers helped when we were younger, and having poor teachers or teachers with different attitudes also left a lasting impression. But when you think about it, whether it's, you know, cooking, driving, banking, living, going to grocery store, restaurants, everything we do all the time, it all involves numbers to some impact, you know, to some effect. And our folks with aphasia, again, not everybody, but the majority of them, will still have an impact with acalculia, difficulty processing numbers and calculating and transcoding, you know, saying, saying the numbers. So, we started to look at it.   I did have a had a gift of time with Audrey Holland. So that was my beautiful, like, for many of us, a mentor, you know, she had her three-pronged stool, like the different parts of aphasia. And Dave and I started dividing it up, like, what were the parts we thought involve, you know, aphasia and numbers. And we did think about the math and language math skills, making it fun, but also those influencing elements, like attitudes and perceptions. So, we started just like, “How do we look at this?” Because it's really overwhelming just from the beginning, you know, and just pulling that workbook off the shelf didn't do it for me. You're allowed to speak on that. (Laughter)   Dave Brancamp That's one of my passions, obviously, the whole math side. But pulling a workbook is an unfortunate because if someone starts to practice something wrong, they'll repeat that practice, and now it's very difficult to get them to correct a habit, basically that you've formed. And sometimes it's like that nails on a chalkboard? That's what it feels like to me when I hear it. I'm like, “Oh, don't do that.” Because if they're doing it wrong, like, 20 times, 10 times, even then it performs a habit that's real hard for them to go, “Well, but I thought I got them all right.”   Katie Strong: Yeah.   Dave Brancamp: Because I think we can all go back to math and you come up unless it was something really, really difficult in at least in our early years of math. We all came up with an answer. And that's how it feels on a worksheet that might have like just adding single digit numbers, if you make an error, you won't know until someone either corrects it or asks you, “How did you get there?” And to me, that's where it became more important. And then I had to learn how to do what do you call it? aphasia friendly language, you know? So, math folks usually speak in short sentences, so that helps. But we'll run a whole bunch of sentences together. If I give you the best example. I know we're going to talk a little bit about that math perception quiz, the difference between us on that question, I think it says “I would prefer to do an assignment in math rather than write an essay.” I'm the person to give me that math assignment. 100%. Tammy is like, give me the essay!   Katie Strong: And I have to say I'm right there with Tammy.   Tami Brancamp I think so, as speech pathologists, we learned about the pedagogy of language and language development. We can analyze it. We can treat it. We can assess it. And then I talked to Dave, and he goes, “Well, there's this whole math I know there's a math pedagogy, and there's this whole developmental progression of how we learn math.” But “Really, okay, well, I've never learned that, right?” “No, you learn this before you learn that.” We lived it, we just weren't overtly taught it. Or how you know, if there's an error in a calculation, that means that there's some challenges in this part of your developmental math abilities. Like, “Huh, okay, well, that kind of sounds like language to me, a little bit.” They do go together.   Katie Strong: Yeah, yeah. So, I love to maybe ask a little bit about this. As we've pretty clearly stated, many SLPs feel uncomfortable with math and their own math skills.   Tami Brancamp: Yeah.   Katie Strong: And we, probably many of us, have avoided it in our own education.   Tami Brancamp: Yeah.   Katie Strong: So I love this idea that there's the language of math, and I was wondering if you could talk a little bit about that and why it should fit right within our scope of practice as SLPs.   Tami Brancamp: A long time ago, I remember how many years ago I came across an article by Seron 2001 in Aphasiology. And he or she, I actually don't know, stated that math should be part of the SLPs practice. I started looking at 20 years later, and it still wasn't (a part of our practice). So, something's really amiss. What are we missing? When we talk about the language, there is a syntax in math. Dave calls it order of operations. And I don't even know what the PEMDAS.   Dave Brancamp: PEMDAS.   Tami Brancamp: PEMDAS, right?   Dave Brancamp: You what scares most people about that? Parentheses, exponents, multiplication, division, addition, subtraction. The left to right. I mean, that's the part people left off.   Tami Brancamp: But, ah, yeah, that kind of sounds familiar, doesn't it?   Katie Strong It does. It's ringing a very faint bell.   Dave Brancamp: It's like, oh no, we're not going to do that.   Tami Brancamp So there is a syntax. There's an order of operations, how we put mathematical equations together. Just like how we put sentences together. There's semantics, right? There's word meaning. We have a little sign for you. It won't translate audio, but we'll talk about it. So, in math, and you use the word or the number, the orthographic representation 2, right? Yes. And then we spell it TWO. We also spell it TO and TOO. And then, if you say, “Okay, we also have a two in the number 12, right?” They have to be able to transcode that and a two in the number 20, the two zero. The two in all those locations has different meaning, right? So, it does have semantics.   The other parts, I think, were important, was memory and executive function. Executive function permeates mathematics in so many ways. So, when we think about our stroke survivors, those are areas that are and can be impacted. Information processing. How much can they hold in memory of being presented with language, and in this case, language and numbers.   So, I think for me, it just, it really is integrated. I also thought, too, when we were looking, I was looking at the neuroscience of it, and there's some shared neuro space that works for math and language. They're not fully disassociated, so I found that really fascinating as well.   Katie Strong Yeah, it really is, as I've been thinking about our conversation and just looking into things a little bit, it really makes sense. And even just thinking about just thinking about a word problem in math, certainly, there's that language component that may be a little less intimidating for SLP clinicians that aren't typically working in practice. But I so appreciate you both bringing this conversation out into the light and doing this work, because I can think of a significant number of clients that I've worked with that have also expressed challenges in all sorts of different ways of math. And sometimes I've been able to maybe support it a little bit, and other times I haven't. And I, you know, whether it's me just avoiding it and saying, “Oh, we could work on all of these other things or we can work on this math thing”  or, you know, it's just frustrating, I think, to not have really the tools to be able to know how to support it.   Our podcast, really focuses on the Life Participation Approach to Aphasia, which really emphasizes a person-centered approach. Like I'm the client I want to choose what I want in my life and what I want to work on. And so, I'm just wondering if you might be able to talk through a little bit about how math skills fit into LPAA framework.   Tami Brancamp: Yeah, we were talking about that, and there's one particular client who has multiple PhDs before his stroke. He has family, adult children. And he's like, “Tammy.” And we were Dave and I were piloting some work together. And he's like, “Guys, I want to take my family to dinner. I want to pay the bill and the tip.” I'm like, “Okay, dude, I got an app for that.” And he's like, “No, I want to do it myself.” So that, to me, is life participation. If a person is fine with an app, let's make it so and work on something else.   Katie Strong: Yeah. Tami Brancamp: But his case, it was so important to him. I'm like, “Okay, here we go.” How do we how do we work on figuring out the tip? Now, does it have to be an exact percent? No, Dave likes to teach it more like there's some more strategies to get to the tip.   Another client I wanted to share, and sometimes too, when we think about assumptions. So, the data on how many people with aphasia also have math difficulties, numeracy difficulties is wide ranging. It's so big. So you can't even really say what percent. But I also had an assumption. I have a gentleman who I've worked with off and on for a very long time. He's nonfluent aphasia and also has apraxia of speech, and so we're working a lot on his language and his speech. And I said, “So how's your math?” “It's fine. You know, I own my own business and I have somebody help, but it's fine.” I'm like, in my head, hmm, I don't think so. I wonder, because the severity of his aphasia and his ability to transcode so like, see a number and then say the name or say the numbers he wants to say, was really impacted. So, we were doing a pilot study during the pandemic online, and so Dave and I were working with this one gentleman. And I think you why don't you do the story because I don't remember you gave him homework or something. A home program.   Dave Brancamp: There's a math game called Krypto.   Tami Brancamp: Oh, Krypto.   Dave Brancamp: So you put five cards down. And each one has its value, you know. And so your listeners just so they know, like when the Jack would fall, that would be 11, and so the Ace automatically took a one, the Queen would be, you know, 12, and the King 13. So five cards different values, or they could be the same value didn't matter, and then one more card became like a target. You had to figure out an equation. So, some big, nice math term there to that you'd add, subtract, multiply, divide to equal this last card.   Now they could do with just two cards, three cards, four cards or five would be ideal. So, they had some room for success. And this gentleman, we had some hard numbers that were there. And, you know, he had done a couple, and was rolling right through. And I kept looking over at Tami and I am like, "He's got his math. His math is really good.”   Tami Brancamp: His ability to calculate.   Dave Brancamp: And then we hit one that was really hard, and we're both looking (each other). And the next thing, you know, this gentleman, not to scare anybody, but makes a complex fraction, making a fraction over another fraction to solve. And you can see right now, right Tammy. Tammy is like, “What are you doing?” I'm like, “Yeah, yeah, no, let's go for it. Let's go for it.” And next thing you know, we were able to solve it by doing two complex fraction with another number. And he solved the problem. And I looked at Tammy said, “This man has no math problems.” Tami Brancamp:  And I said, “Boys, I'm out. I'm out. You all just continue playing with your numbers. Have a good time.” That's not a comfort zone for me. It's also not the focus we're doing with aphasia in math. But it was something he was capable to do, and I also could see within him, he was super excited that he could do this.   Katie Strong: Yeah   Dave Brancamp: And he wanted to show his wife. He wanted to show other people, he was like, “Look at this. Look at this.” You know, I was like, “Yeah, there's a lot happening.”   Tami Brancamp: But he could not read the equation. Okay, so there's the aphasia language issue.   Katie Strong: Right.   Tami Brancamp: Transcoding. He could do the calculations without difficulty.   Katie Strong: Amazing.   Tami Brancamp: But those are the those are really fascinating. And while we were piloting, we had a group of, I don't know, five or six people with aphasia, and each one had their own. They're all on the non-fluent side, but everybody had their own combination of language difficulty and number processing difficulty. We did notice what one client we worked with who had more cognitive impairment along with language and hers, her processing was much more different than pure aphasia and the acalculia issues. So, it's really interesting to see. It's definitely not cookie cutter, right? Just like aphasia therapy.   Katie Strong: Right.   Tami Brancamp: Every person's got their unique strengths and challenges. And I'm going to say similarly, I think with the math. Where in the brain was the injury? What is their background? What are their interests and passions? All of that plays in just like in aphasia.   Katie Strong: I love bringing up though their prior experience with math too is so important. We think about that from a language standpoint, but we really don't consider that. Or I will speak for myself, I don't typically consider that when I'm learning about somebody and their strengths.   Tami Brancamp: Yeah.   Dave Brancamp: You think like to go back to your language, like the word “sum” S-U-M, is what we'd use in math for adding, but it has the same sounding as “some” S-O-M-E and so right there, there's some language difficulty that could come out. So often we will have flash cards with the plus symbol so that they and can associate words and just so that you feel better on it, too.   Most of us, when we'd heard subtraction probably used an unfortunate phrase of what's called “takeaway”.  Well, that's not what happens from a mathematical point. So, us in the math side, cringe and are like, “Oh well, the numbers don't get taken away. They're still there.” They got, you know, replaced is what we would call them. And so the word of difference, you know, where you live in a different town than we do, so that's what we associate but difference is how we do subtraction. So those little, simple nuances that I had to also remember too because I taught junior high, which most of them were fairly comfortable with their, you know, at least their basic skills. And I'd heard those terms where suddenly, you know, Tammy would bring up to me, “You're gonna have to help us out with that” because that it's easy for you to say that it's causing a problem and that makes us then, you know, have those moments of pause that you're like, “Oh yeah, you're right. I've got to do that.”   Tami Brancamp: Just a little aside on that with we just finished a pilot study with two groups of people doing online intervention. So that background of knowledge, you know, say you got 10 people in a group, and you could see the people who go, “Oh yeah, I remember that. I remember that math language.” You're getting, the nodding like, “Oh yeah, that's right.” And then there's others who have like, “I don't understand what he's saying.” The look. So, it's really fascinating to make sure that we pay as much attention to that background as we do in language.   Katie Strong: Yeah. Interesting, interesting.   Dave Brancamp: I don't know if you want to go down that path, but like when we hit time, you know, which is an element that folks aphasia really want to work with, right? And yet, it's a whole different concept mathematically, because we are used to in almost all the countries we work with of things from, you know, basically what we call base 10 or zero to 100 zero to 10, we can play time is in elements of 12. And so, like you might say it's a quarter past, you know, like one, that's not a 25 it's written as 1:15. And you know, what does that mean? And, oh, I don't know. I don't know how I'm supposed to be at the bus stop or the doctor appointment or whatever they may be going to.   Katie Strong: Right, right.   Dave Brancamp: And a lot of our groups found that to be a huge help, you know. And as much as we all laugh, you probably at least most of us remember when we were in elementary school having little clocks that we might play with.   Katie Strong: Right   Dave Brancamp:  We call them our Judy clocks from when we were as teachers. But it's like, as simple as those are, those are what you need to bring back and go, “Let's take a look at what you know, because it's a quarter of the circle, and that's where it got its name from.”   Tami Brancamp: But it's one over four, like 1/4 one quarter.   Dave Brancamp: But that's not how we'd write it in time. It's actually whatever the hour is and the 15, and you're like, “Where'd that come from?” So, it was very fascinating to watch, and especially when we did some work with some of the clinicians, are just like, “Oh, you're kidding. I didn't even think about that.” It's because we knew it. we transition it naturally and not thinking, “Oh my gosh, my brain now has to re-picture this”. So.   Katie Strong: It is fascinating.   Tami Brancamp: And that you can see how much language is involved.   Tami Brancamp: Huge. Huge.   Katie Strong: Yeah, well, I'm excited to talk about the projects and research that you've been doing. You gave us kind of a teaser about these online groups. Should we start there?   Tami Brancamp: Maybe, we aren't there. We haven't analyzed all the data…   Katie Strong: I'm curious.   Tami Brancamp: Yeah, that'll be a teaser. We are working with our partner, Carolyn Newton. She's in London, and she is at University College London. She's done some work in mathematics and aphasia, and also her doc students, so we're working with them. They did all the assessment with my students. And then Dave and I did intervention. We had two groups. We had, like, a Level 1 and a Level 2. Everybody had aphasia. And we did group intervention primarily because Dave and I have been working with Lingraphica and Aphasia Recovery Connections Virtual Connections.   Katie Strong: Yep.   Tami Brancamp: Since March of 22, we've been doing it every single month.   Katie Strong: Amazing.   Tami Brancamp: We had some time off. Yeah, but you know, what's so crazy is that we average about 38 people who come on to do the session.   Katie Strong: Wow!   Tami Brancamp: Oh, I know, with a range like 19 to 50 people.   Katie Strong: That is amazing, but such a testament that people are interested in this topic.   Tami Brancamp: That's what made us keep pushing forward. Because if that many people show up, there's an interest and there's a need.   Katie Strong: Right.   Tami Brancamp: You know? But how do we how do we help is the challenge. We are in the process of analyzing, did we could that group in the way that we did it, like twice a month over three months? Would that impact change? They could hold it at the end of the treatment. And then we also did 30 days later, so we'll see. And then we also did some we did the math, attitudes and perceptions.   Katie Strong: I took it so maybe give people a little bit of background on what this is.   Tami Brancamp: Yeah. So this is a we looked at a lot of different tools, and this one is called, what is it called Attitudes Toward Mathematics Inventory. And it was designed for adults, college age, students and adults. There's a lot for children. But this is like, really, you know, what do you think about math in terms of you like it, you don't like it. Is it important? Not important. And so there is a lower number means that you are less confident, less familiar.   Dave Brancamp: You might not like it. You might not like it as much.   Katie Strong: And it might give you a rash.   Tami Brancamp: (Laughs) It might give you a rash!   Dave Brancamp: I'm sorry.   Tami Brancamp:  Right, all the things that it does. It's up to a point of 200 Do you want to share what your score was?   Katie Strong: Well, I didn't calculate it. I just did the ABCDE, but I'm gonna guess it's in the lower like 25th. Tami Brancamp: Yeah.   Dave Brancamp: So let me ask you, what was your last math class?   Katie Strong: It was a statistics class in my PhD program.   Dave Brancamp: And how did that class make you feel? Were you like, “Oh, I'm so excited to go!” or like, “Oh my gosh, I just got to get this done.”   Katie Strong: I wanted to get out of there as quickly as I could. I tried hard, and I just kept, I think I kept telling myself it was hard and I couldn't do it, and it just and it was.   Dave Brancamp: So, if you think about that, for us as adults, right? Or anybody, even kids. Take our kids. Whatever your last class is, it sits with us. It's a memory we carry. And then math has its unique way of, kind of building on itself. And then it can bridge to a couple different areas and what have you, but it builds. And if your last class wasn't the most pleasant. You didn't score well, or you didn't have a teacher that you could relate with, or whatever it was, you probably don't have a real fun feeling of math. So that leads to our perceptions, right? And it's and you know, using this we've done this with some of your students as they go through soon to be clinicians, and as soon as they took it and then had us talk, they you almost want to say, “Let's take it again”, because our feeling is of that last class. But when you find out, what we'll probably do is adding, subtracting, multiplying, maybe division, not likely. But what we call basic life skills, it may change how you took the test or take the inventory, because, you know, like for me, it's still, it will never change the fact of giving a math problem over an essay. I'll give you guys the essay. I'll take the math problem. But it's just, you know, is it important your everyday life? Well, how often do you do your statistics on an everyday life? That was your last class right? Not a lot, maybe some. But it's, you know, it's becomes an interesting whatever sitting with us probably has a feeling. If we come in with a bad attitude toward what we're going to teach or share with you, no matter whether they have aphasia or if it's just us in a general setting, they're going to know you don't like this, then why should I spend time with it so we that's the My purpose is make it so that they enjoy even if it's difficult, we're going to enjoy it so that otherwise, you know, I'm already behind because you don't like it. So why should I like it?   Katie Strong: And I love that because, I mean, I know that, like hard work can be fun. I mean, in a therapy situation, hard work can be fun, but thinking about this from a math standpoint really is kind of a game changer for me.   Tami Brancamp:  One of the things, and I think we'll come back to the research a little bit. But Dave likes gamification. I don't really like to play games, right?   Dave Brancamp: You're getting better! Tami Brancamp: But you have to, you know.   Dave Brancamp: I will pick up like dice. We try to do things that we figure our folks could find rather easily. You know whether you have dice from a Yahtzee game where you can go pick them up and a deck of cards. Almost everything I do with them are one of those two. It might take a little more looking, but I'll we often use what are called foam dice so they don't make all that noise, because sometimes too much noise can be very bothersome. And then using, like, the whiteboard or something to write with helps so they can see, because sometimes you'll be playing a game and they'll have no idea of the math that's involved and why there might have been, like, a strategy or so on.   Tami Brancamp: When we do work with people using cards and dice to generate the numbers, we have activities we do and we make it aphasia friendly, but we'll also discuss, maybe after the fact, “All right, so how did you do? Where was it difficult? I want you to recognize that you were working on executive function here. You were giving it strategies and thinking and multiple steps ahead.” So that they can recognize it isn't a kid game.   Katie Strong: Yeah, just a game.” Yeah.   Tami Brancamp: It's not just a game. It's making it fun and a little bit more lighthearted. If we can lighten it, but still make it skilled intervention, I'm not in there to play games and win. But having a give and take, a little competition, some laughter, some humor, while we're doing the intervention. To me, that's a lovely session.   Dave Brancamp: One of the things Katie, we found, too, is there's not a lot of good tests out there for math to diagnose the problem. You can find out by taking the different tests, and you and Tammy know the exact names, but they'll say, “Well, Dave has a problem doing math.” But now where do I start? Is a whole different game, because they build, as we said earlier, and if I don't start at the right spot the building block, I get a sense of failure immediately, because I can't do it, whereas you need to just keep backing up, just like you do in language, you keep backing up till you find my starting point. And that's one of the areas we'll maybe talk about later, is those things we're trying to figure do we work on finding a better way to assess the math, to truly know what's Dave or your client or whoever, whatever they're doing, because sometimes it could be simply the language, like we had with the one gentleman who has great math skills.   Katie Strong: Right.   Dave Brancamp: And others could be I can't even tell the difference between these two numbers, which is larger or smaller. And so now we have to start back at what we call basic number sense. It can be anywhere in that game, and it's like, well, they can't add. Well, do we know they can't add? Or do they just not recognize that six is smaller than eight.   Tami Brancamp:  Or how did you let them tell you the answer. If you only get a verbal response versus writing response, or, you know, selecting from four choices, you know. All of those give us different information when you're when you're having to blend a language disorder and a numeracy disorder.   Dave Brancamp: Because that one gentleman, he struggles immensely with anything with a two in it, so 20s, just…so you could easily say, “Wow, there's no way this man has math skills.” I mean he's doing complex fractions. He just couldn't tell you it's one over two. It was be like, I don't know what that is called.   Katie Strong: Fascinating.   Dave Brancamp: We enjoy the game part. And one of the pieces in this last research we did that was a new thing, right? We didn't even think of it prior was what we call a home program. Taking the game we did, putting it in friend aphasia friendly language with pictures so they could practice them.   Katie Strong: Okay.   Dave Brancamp:  Because we would not see them for like a two they was every two weeks. So, some could practice. I would say our Level 1 -  our folks working on foundational sets practiced more than are more advanced. Which was very fascinating.   Tami Brancamp: What we were doing in this research, the most recent one, we would encourage people to, you know, take a photo, take a screenshot of the work we're doing. But we also did it too, and then we put it into a page with an explanation, and then we would send it so that they could, ideally practice with a family member or a friend, or by themselves. You know, that's also a variable for people, right?   Dave Brancamp: And what we found in it, they needed more pictures. In our first attempt, we didn't put as many. So we would ask them, “since you wanted this, did that help?” “Not really.” They're honest.   Katie Strong: Yeah.   Dave Brancamp: We appreciate that. And they're like, Well, what? Why didn't it like, well, it, even though we tried to make it as aphasia friendly language, it was just too much word   Tami Brancamp:  Too many words.   Dave Brancamp: Too many words. So then we started asking, “well would more pictures help?” “Yes.” So we did that. So they helped us. It was amazing to watch.   Tami Brancamp: So that research project will we can get to down the road once we figure out what was going on. What we did share with you was the survey that we did with speech language pathologists from the United States and the United Kingdom. So we thought, well, Carolyn's there, and we kind of look at math a little bit similarly. So we had 60 participants who completed the study. We want to know, like, do you treat people with aphasia who also have math difficulties? If so, what are you doing? Dave and I still wanted to look at the attitudes and perception, because I still believe that's an influencing factor. But we also wanted to get a good sense, like when you are working with people with aphasia, who have number difficulties, what difficulties are you seeing? And then what are you doing? What do you use to assess?  And what are some of the barriers? So it gave us a nice overview, and that one's out for review currently. Anywhere from like, how many of you work on numeracy difficulties? About 35% responded with rarely, and 40% responded with occasionally, and 17 said frequently. And also, there was no difference between the countries.   Katie Strong: Oh, interesting.   Tami Brancamp: Yeah, I thought so too.   Katie Strong: But I also think too, you know, I mean, there really isn't a lot out there instructing SLPs on how to do this work in an evidence-based manner. So that makes a little bit of sense.   Tami Brancamp: It did, because I still felt the same way for myself, like, “Where do I go to learn how to do this?” Okay. I'm married to a math teacher, so I'm learning right? It's a lot of give and take. And Carolyn, our partner, she's very good about when we're talking about this she's like, “But not everybody has a Dave on their shoulder.” Like, “No, they do not.” Because even today, I'm still a little cautious, like if I had to go do all this solo, I have some holes that I want, and those are the things I want to help us create for future training opportunities and education continuing ed that would help clinicians who really want to do this and they have a client who wants to work with it, right?   Katie Strong: I hope that's a large number of people, because I think, you know, I think that this is really a significant challenge that I hear so often from support group members or people that I work with who have aphasia.   Tami Brancamp: I really think that's why we keep going, because we hear it from our we hear it from our clients.   Katie Strong: Yeah.   Tami Brancamp: We're not hitting it as much in acute care, for sure, rehab, you might get a little sample that is going on, but it's usually that outpatient. And then the longer term, like the they have some of the big needs met. And then we've got time to maybe look at math. But for some people, math should have been math and language together could have been hit earlier. But who's to say, you know?   Dave Brancamp: Well, you would know it best because I've asked when we first started this there would be like one, Tammy would give me one of her classes, and I would talk to them about math and absolutely deer in the headlight looks, “Oh my gosh, what are you going to do?” to by the end realizing “We're going to make this as fun as we can. We're going to use dice and cards, and we're going to do pretty much what we call foundational adding subtracting skills that they were welcome”, but you already have so much in your course to do that we just don't even have time. So that becomes this very interesting, because, you know, one of the big questions Tammy always asked me is, “Well, how can I know this pedagogical, or the reason behind?” I know they'll be able to hear but, I mean, I've done this now for 30 plus years, so there's a lot in my head that I have to figure out, how do we do this? So I can see this is the problem by how they addressed it without them having to take a whole other set of courses.   Tami Brancamp: Yeah, we can't. There is surely not room for whole courses. So it's got to be embedded in existing coursework, or continuing ed opportunities after training.   Katie Strong: Or both, right?   Tami Brancamp: Yeah, I think both. Some of those barriers that we found people saying was, you know, there's not training on it, which I agree.   Dave Brancamp: There's not the resources.   Tami Brancamp: Yes, there's not the resources. And are the tests that people use. They have some sampling of math. But my question always is, “Okay, so I give this little bit of math in my aphasia test or something else like and now, what? Well, I know what they can't do, but what does that mean? And how might I support them for relearning?” I found it more helpful to look at it from a developmental perspective. I'm going to learn a, b, c, d, and I'm going to learn x, y, z, and then it helps me understand, like, “Where might I start?” Because I don't have to go down to counting dots, right? That number sense larger, less than visually. If that's not where the client needs to be. But learning where they need to be, we need better assessments for that. I don't know if that's something we're going to be able to tackle or not. I mean, Dave spent quite a big part of his professional career, developing assessments. So, it would be logical. But there's so many pieces to do.   Katie Strong: Right? It's a big it's a big undertaking. Dave Brancamp: Well, there's so much that you gain by finding out from the client how you did the problem. It could be four plus six is what? and they write two. Well, I need to know why you think it's two. So did you think that was subtraction? Because they just didn't see the plus symbol. Well, you know? Well, then they have some good math. There's some good math there. They did the math correctly if they subtracted it. It's not the answer I'm looking for. And so could they say, you know, when you asked it if you were a person and he's like, “Katie, so if I gave you six things and gave you four more, how many your total?” Do you know what that even meant to do? These things that just gives us clues to where your math might be and for unfortunately, for a lot of us, which makes it hard for me, I feel bad that they didn't have the experience is ones and zeros have some very powerful meanings in math that unfortunately, scare a lot of folks.   Katie Strong: Yeah, right.   Tami Brancamp: I never learned the fun stuff of math, you know. There's some tricks and some knowledge and some skills that I, you know, good math teachers will teach you, and I just didn't really learn those. So, Dave's teaching me just because I were doing this together? I don't know. I kind of was thinking like what we talked a little bit about, what does the intervention look like?   Katie Strong: Yeah.   Tami Brancamp: Gamification, making it fun, not using workbooks. We're hoping that we could utilize some of the home programs that we've created, and share those as part of the teaching.   Dave Brancamp: And like the game. I think I told you that we did with that one gentleman with Krypto. It could simply be like a target number or something of that nature, but it's fun to have when we did with our both groups with Virtual Connections, or our research groups, other people could find out, like, you could solve it one way, Katie. Tammy could do it a different way, and I could do it a completely different way. And it was fascinating to watch the groups, like, I had no idea you could do it there. And that's what we need to hear So that people go, “Oh, you don't have to do it just one way.” Because I, unfortunately, and some are my colleagues, they forced, “I need you to do it x way.” It's like, “Well, okay, maybe to start. But now let's open the door to all these other ways you can, like, add a number or whatever.” And because it always fascinates me when we do, is it multiplication or subtraction? Now I forget, but one way Tammy is, like, “I never learned it that way. I always…” and, you know, it was just how she grew up. It was what you were taught.   Tami Brancamp: Well, like multiplication. When I'm multiplying multiple numbers, it's like, I'm kind of just adding multiples of things. So, how I get to the answer is very different than how Dave does, yeah, and we've had experiences with care partners, who we were doing some of the pilot work, who felt very strong that their way was the only way. Is this some generational differences? I suspect there's some of that, but it's also just, it's personality. This is how I know how to do it, and this is how it should be done. Well, not necessarily.   Katie Strong: It really mind blowing for me to be thinking about. I mean, I know that, like, you can teach things in different ways, but I just didn't really think about it from a math standpoint, because, probably because I know how to do things one way. If I know how to do it, it's probably one way, versus having more versatility in “If this doesn't work, try something else.”   Dave Brancamp: But like on a deck of cards at least the ones we use, they'll have, like a seven of diamonds. There's seven little diamonds on that card. Well, nothing else. Put your finger to them. There's nothing wrong with counting 1 2 3 4 5 6 7. Now, when you move over to the three, go 8 9 10, and there's your answer. They're like, “I can do that?” “I'm like, sure you can!” I can use my fingers? You know, it's, it's those, it's those little things that, unfortunately, probably for a lot of us and a lot of our clients, went through, at least in my experience, in math as we went through school, we took away those, what we call manipulatives in math, that you learn it right, bringing them back now, so that they're like, “Oh, I can do this”” So they can see it, or they can write it in a different way, or, you know, whatever it takes to help them. That's one of the pieces that's so amazing.   Tami Brancamp: We definitely support a multi modal approach. Not just one way.   Katie Strong: Which, I think the clinicians who are listening to this conversation will feel like, “Oh, I do a multi modal approach in all of the other things that I do in my interventions.” And so, you know, that makes sense.   Dave Brancamp: And that's where we saw that piece of saying that we're trying to unite math and language. The two of those do play together. You know, it's like because you just said you spend weeks and weeks with all your future clinicians training them on all these skills and language, so many of those will play out just as well in math, except to do it in a different way.   Katie Strong: Mmm. So we've talked about what the intervention might look like, and we'll be excited to see what comes out from your projects that you're in the process of analyzing but looking ahead, what excites you most about where this field could go?   Dave Brancamp: Oh my, that's the question!   Tami Brancamp: There's a lot of work to be done. It actually is…it's fun. We are wondering, you know, how might it be if it's on a one on one, a more traditional model, right for our outpatient settings, versus small groups. Katie Strong: I'll say this. I should have said it earlier, but for those of you listening, I'll put in a link to Virtual Connections and if you're interested in seeing Tammy and Dave's math Aphasia + Math.   Dave Brancamp: Yeah, it's aphasia plus math. It would be Level 1 or 2. They can come watch the whole thing. It's fascinating to watch them how they work.   Tami Brancamp: They are best teachers, yep, without a doubt.   Dave Brancamp: To your last question, “So that's with the clients?” But you know, there's been and we've talked on and we've touched on, like, “how do we help our clinicians?” And then the unfortunate side of that stool that sometimes gets forgotten is, what could we do for our caregivers? Does this help? Because we've all been taught differently. so sometimes you might look at one of the gamifications we did and went, “Oh, I can't do that. That's not how I add.” We have a very set format, or do they understand the language? Do we make it clear enough. So, you know, we're I think that's a great question, because then we get torn to just time in the day to say, “But I want to still work with my clients, but we need to help clinicians so they can help us, and don't forget the caregiver in there.” I know it's not an easy answer. It's not the it's nothing nice and smooth, but it's kind of the one that we've been really what is to what are we doing.   Katie Strong: And probably also why it this hasn't, there aren't tons of resources already developed, right? That it is complex.   Dave Brancamp: Well, and I will tie back to our attitudes. What we found, we were fortunate enough to do….     Tami Brancamp: IARC. The International Aphasia Rehab Conference. we presented there.   Dave Brancamp: So some of our beginning there's an awful lot of interest out of Australia and Europe. But Australia and Europe, and I'm not trying to sound bad or negative, but they take look at math very differently than like England and the United States for sure does. That's a natural like thought, we don't accept the term. “I don't do math well.” They don't like to say that. There's an increased interest, at least in those two areas of the world, to when we but we gotta strengthen this, this is important. So, we've found that very fascinating, that some of our folks who've drawn an interest and set out of this come out of the main countries of Europe, or from Australia, because they don't mind talking about a subject that we often go, “I'm good at this, right? Let Dave solve it.” And it's like, well, but I don't have the skill set that all of you SLPs have.   Tami Brancamp: In our earlier conversations, we touch on the fact that United States, it's okay for me to say, you know, “I don't do math, right?” It's okay, and it's sort of accepted in some cases, it's kind of a badge of honor in some ways. But if I were to say, “Oh, I can't read” you know, that's we one. We want to help if somebody admits it. But there's a personal sense of shame attached. So, in our country, I believe the perceptions are different. You have the person who's had the stroke, has survived the stroke, has the aphasia, and now also has the math difficulties. That's a lot to navigate, and I respect in our in our world, as a clinician, I can't address all of it. So following that Life Participation Approach, we're going to let our clients be our guide. Support, train, and look at where their priorities are. And it's never enough. There's never enough therapy, never enough opportunity to be in a group environment, because not everybody has access to that, you know, but I think, “Where can I make a difference?” Like, that's probably my question. Like, I can't fix the world, so let me keep backing it down, backing it down, backing it down. And if I can make a difference with 5, 10, 15, 20, people, Hey, and then let those ripples go as they go out and make a difference and learn. I think that, in itself, is powerful.   Katie Strong: Beautiful, and certainly is conjuring up Audrey here. Well, I've got one last question for you as we wrap it up. But you know, what would you say to an SLP, who's listening right now and thinking, I want to help my clients with math, but I don't know where to start.   Tami Brancamp:  So one of, I think one thing for me is you do know basic math. You know everyday math. You do know how to do this.  So one just start. You can get a little assessment. You can use the existing ones that are out there with our aphasia batteries or the Numerical Activities for Daily Living.   Dave Brancamp: I would say, a deck of cards are not hard, you know, hopefully they have or some dice, yeah, and use those to generate the numbers. Or bring in, like, when they want to do tips, we would often just bring in receipts of anything and just say, “Let's say something cost $18.72. Round it up to 20 and make it a friendly number.” So it's around 20, So it's a little bit easier for them to grab onto and hold, and it's okay to say, because we've done it in our own sets going through, “Oh, wait a minute, six plus six is not 13. Look at what I did here. I let me, let's check this and add it.” Because sometimes you'll hear just even, you know, like when any of us are doing something, you look and go, oops, I made a mistake.   Tami Brancamp: Okay, right?   Dave Brancamp: It's all right, hey, to make mistakes and say, that's what we all do. And then, you know, but I mean to me, it's if we can get, like, if you want to use one or two problems off a worksheet, use it as a driver to start discussion and say, “So what can we do?” And see if they can do anything. Because sometimes it's amazing what we'll find out is just knowing that 16 is a bigger number than just 12 is let them and then what's the difference between right there, you could figure out subtraction if they know it or not. And we often will in if they have a chance to look on the website or any of this stuff, we'll take out, like all the face cards, we'll take out the 10. Keep moving it down to numbers that they're comfortable with, like dice will only be the numbers one to six, yeah, but if I use two dice, I could make some interesting two digit numbers, right, that are in that range. So it's just things that make it so they can grab on. And then you can start adding and changing rules and some of the math games they may have seen, they just adjust them so that they have access points. The true rules of Krypto is, you must use all five cards in order to get a point. Well, we just change it usually is two, right?   Tami Brancamp: Like we do for everything we can modify.   Katie Strong: I love this. And I mean, I'm thinking, most clinics have a deck of cards and dice.   Tami Brancamp: In most households in general, not but in general, you're going to have access to those tools. We didn't want people to have to go buy crazy stuff. I think there's one challenge I do want to think about and put out there. So, our new clinicians who are graduating, let's say they're in their mid-20s, and I know there's a range they are doing online banking. How are they going to support an older adult?   Katie Strong: Oh, right.   Tami Brancamp: Very structured and rigid in their checking account. I think we have to think about some again, different ways. None of the students that I teach today, and even our own son, they don't have a checkbook. Yeah, they don't write checks. So that's gonna introduce another variable down the road, but in the meantime, cards, dice, numbers, gamification, simplifying, watching language, thinking about executive function, number of steps, how we how we speak, the instructions. Give the directions. It's language.   Dave Brancamp: And ask the client what they think or what they might have heard, because it's interesting what they would have, what we've learned from them as well.   Katie Strong: Thank you so much for being a part of our conversation today, and for the listeners, I'll have some links in the show notes for you to check out for some info on Aphasia + Math. Thank you.   Tami Brancamp: Thanks for having us.   Dave Brancamp: And thanks for playing with us too. Thank you. Katie Strong: On behalf of Aphasia Access, thank you for listening. For references and resources mentioned in today's show please see our show notes. They're available on our website, www.aphasiaaccess.org.There you can also become a member of our organization, browse our growing library of materials and find out about the Aphasia Access Academy. If you have an idea for a future podcast episode, email us at info@aphasiaaccess.org. For Aphasia Access Conversations, here at Central Michigan University in the Strong Story Lab, I'm Katie Strong.   Resources Aphasia + Math focuses on strategies for the rehabilitation of everyday mathematics in people with aphasia. Tami and Dave focus on four pillars to support this work: Influencing Elements (math literacy, learning environment, aphasia severity); Math and Language (receptive & expressive language, cognition including executive function and  memory); Foundational Math Skills (use of linguistic and numerical symbols, lexicon, syntax, semantics); and Aphasia Friendly Math Activities (gamification in learning,  understanding math language, opportunities for communication). Their goal is to unite math and language. Contact Tami tbrancamp@med.unr.edu   Join the Aphasia + Math Facebook Community Join an Aphasia + Math session on Virtual Connections   Brancamp, T. & Brancamp, D. (2022). Exploring Aphasia + Math. Aphasia Access 24-Hour Virtual Teach-In. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mGSOJzmBJI   Girelli, L. & Seron, X. (2001). ) Rehabilitation of number processing and calculation skills. Aphasiology, 15(7), 695-71. https://doi.org/10.1080/02687040143000131 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/32888331_Rehabilitation_of_number_processing_and_calculation_skills#fullTextFileContent   Tapia, M. (1996). Attitudes toward mathematics inventory. https://www.academia.edu/29981919/ATTITUDES_TOWARD_MATHEMATICS_INVENTORY  

Ep 333: Transforming airway health & smiles with MARPE featuring Dr. Svitlana Koval, DMD, MSc, BDSThis week on The Untethered Podcast™, Hallie welcomes back Dr. Svitlana Koval, Florida's leading provider of Miniscrew-Assisted Rapid Palatal Expansion (MARPE). Together, they explore the powerful connection between dental expansion, airway health, and facial balance covering MARPE and clear aligner mechanics, Hallie's personal experience with her children's treatment, timelines, post-care, and the transformative outcomes of a holistic approach.If this episode resonates with you, snap a screenshot of you listening and share it on your Instagram Stories! Tag Hallie @halliebulkin and @drsvitlanakoval to spread the word.In this episode, you'll learn:✔️ Clear Aligner (e.g., Invisalign) Journey and Airway Health✔️ Personal Experience with MARPE and Facial Asymmetry✔️ Understanding MARPE: Procedures and Techniques✔️ Comparing Traditional Expanders and MARPE✔️ Timeline and Procedures for Adult Expansion✔️ Understanding Bone Remodeling and Expansion Techniques✔️ Aesthetic Considerations in Orthodontic Treatment✔️ Timeline for Appliance Removal and Bone Fusion✔️ Impact of Expansion on Facial Structure✔️ Addressing Concerns with Mini Screws and TADs✔️ In-Office Procedure Insights and Patient Care✔️ Managing Asymmetries in Facial StructureRELATED EPISODES YOU MIGHT LOVEEp 263: Breathing Easy – Link Between Orthodontics, Speech & Health with Dr. Svitlana Koval & Tiffany ZilbermanEp 331: Inside My MARPE Journey with yours truly, Hallie BulkinABOUT TODAY'S GUESTI am so excited for you to meet Dr. Svitlana Koval! You can hang out with her over on Instagram and check out her practice at drssk.com.✨ FREE TRAINING ALERT – HAPPENING SEPTEMBER 8–10!If you're an SLP, OT, or student… you need to join me for the FREE 3-Day Pediatric Feeding Screening Training. Over 34,000 of your colleagues have done it — now it's your turn!Here's what you'll get when you sign up:4 hours on a certificate of completion (perfect for your renewal hours)My complete pediatric feeding screening packet — development chart, 50-symptom checklist, findings chart & referral formA chance to win one of FOUR full scholarships to the 12-week Feed The Peds® courseGrab your spot here → www.feedthepeds.com/trainingOTHER WAYS TO CONNECT & LEARN

Hallie & fellow SLP Kimberly Kean discuss the importance of self-care for SLPsThis week on SLP Coffee Talk, Hallie sits down with the inspiring Kim from Speech Dreamers to talk all things SELF-CARE.

As the healthcare landscape continues to evolve, teleaudiology is emerging as a transformative approach to improving access to audiology services, especially for young children who may have limited access to in-person care.This review highlights the impact and effectiveness of teleaudiology, examining key areas such as early intervention, family involvement, diagnostic accuracy, and the integration of telehealth technologies. Given the increasing role of telemedicine in public health and the critical importance of early detection and intervention for children born with hearing impairments, this topic could be highly relevant to your audience of healthcare professionals, caregivers, and individuals invested in public health advancements.Joining Mark Alynon this edition of Late Night Health is Pamela Rowe, MA, ccc-SLP and Lauren M. Ramsey, PhD MPH talking about hard of hearing children.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/late-night-health-radio--2804369/support.

Virginia is shaking up SLP licensure. Dr. Jeanette Benigas, SLP, talks with Ed Bice, M.Ed./SLP, acting president of the Speech-Hearing Association of Virginia, about their petition to eliminate provisional licenses and grant full licensure to new grads immediately upon graduation. They unpack the petition's purpose, address mentorship versus supervision, explore impacts on The Audiology & Speech-Language Pathology Interstate Compact, and discuss how Virginia's model could inspire other states to modernize their systems.

If you've ever wondered what it's really like to step into the mission field for Jesus —or how you can make a difference for the kingdom in global missions without leaving home — this is your episode. Today, I'm joined by Julianne Heilman, founder of Asifiwe Child Care Ministries in Uganda, a life-changing ministry that rescues vulnerable children, gives them hope and opportunity, and shares the love of Jesus. Think stories you've only read in missionary biographies—except they're happening right now. This conversation is extra special for me, because She Lives Purposefully began as a college project where I interviewed six women who live with purpose—and Julianne was one of them! Now, years later, we get to sit down again and hear how God has been moving in powerful ways. In This Episode, We Talk About: How Julianne knew she was called by God to missions—and the spiritual & practical steps to take if you feel the same How Asifiwe Child Care Ministries began and where it is today  How to support missions even if you're not called to go abroad Ways you can get involved Whether you're praying about your own call to missions, looking for ways to support from home, or just want to be encouraged by God's faithfulness, this conversation will inspire and challenge you. Resources & Links Mentioned: Learn more about Asifiwe Child Care Ministries: https://asifiwechildcare.org Julianne's original She Lives Purposefully story: https://www.shelivespurposefully.com/2018/08/04/julianne-heilman/ Subscribe to She Lives Purposefully for ad-free episodes on SLP+: https://shelivespurposefully.supercast.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, I'm giving you a behind-the-scenes tour of the three digital binders I created to save SLPs hours of prep time and reduce session stress. We'll explore the Assessment Binder, Probe Binder, and Visuals Binder—with over 2,400 pages of ready-to-use tools. I also share practical ways to use them for instant access, better data collection, and more engaged students. Whether you're planning therapy, writing IEPs, or tracking progress, these binders make it easy to work smarter, not harder as an SLP!Need these binders? Head to slpnow.com/summit to find out more! Or email hello@slpnow.com.

Cindy Watson, celebrating 30 years as an SLP and making her third appearance on the podcast, returns with BCBA Ashley Snavely to share how their clinic blends multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary care.“We were missing something,” Cindy reflects. Already offering PT, OT, and Speech, their team recognized therapists needed tools to address challenging behaviors. Adding ABA was the evidence-based solution. In this episode, Cindy and Ashley discuss the early stages of collaboration—how large group trainings, comprehensive education, and the creation of the BILT (Behavior Intervention Leadership Team) empowered therapists to problem-solve before BCBAs step in. They also dive into AAC in a collaborative setting, emphasizing curiosity, data-driven decisions, and open communication as key to success.Together, they show how a “we want to learn from you” mindset builds trust, resolves disagreements, and ultimately leads to what matters most—meaningful progress for every learner.#autism #speechtherapyWhat's Inside:Integrating ABA into a multidisciplinary clinic.How to collaborate with ACCHandling disagreements across providers.Fostering open communication and learning among therapists and providers. Mentioned In This Episode:Episode #115: Early Intervention Speech Therapy Services – A Talk With Cindy WatsonEpisode #191: Autism in Girls- A Conversation with Cindy and MCSpeech Membership - ABA Speech  ABA Speech: Home

Jesus, Mormon, and David Lynch walk into Stephen Carter’s head. Together, they manage to revise everything Stephen thought he knew about the Book of Mormon, the Atonement, and Eraserhead. https://sunstone.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/SLP-204.mp3

  Fostering positive relationships with autistic preschoolers is incredibly important. In this episode, I talk about emotional safety, understanding sensory needs, and the role of co-regulation in supporting self-regulation. The discussion highlights the need to step out of traditional teacher roles, validate autistic play, and harness deep interests to create meaningful connections. Core values such as compassion over compliance and honoring neurodiversity are explored, along with strategies for creating joyful, neuroaffirming classrooms. The conversation concludes with a focus on the long-term impact of connection and the importance of empowering educators and caregivers. Takeaways: Positive relationships create emotional safety for children. Understanding sensory needs is crucial for connection. Co-regulation supports self-regulation in children. Stepping out of teacher mode fosters authentic connections. Autistic play is valid and meaningful, reflecting unique interactions. Deep interests can be a doorway to connection. Compassion over compliance is essential in education. Creating joyful, neuroaffirming classrooms enhances learning. Presuming competence in communication builds trust. Connection lays the foundation for long-term success. Links: Episode 90: Autism & Play Culture with Dr. Pamela Wolfberg https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-autism-little-learners-podcast/id1665404820?i=1000671411034 Blog: Strength-Based Approach For Teaching Autistic Children: https://autismlittlelearners.com/strength-based-approach/ You may also be interested in these supports: Visual Support Starter Set  Visual Supports Facebook Group Autism Little Learners on Instagram Autism Little Learners on Facebook