SPEECH THERAPY
is part of the services offered at our practice
Our speech therapists at Heidi Allan’s Practice currently provide professional speech therapy assessments and therapy sessions at our Umhlanga as well as at leading KwaZulu-Natal schools such as Clifton Prep, DPHS, Durban Girls College and Maris Stella.
“Speech therapy is an art that deserves to be more widely known.”
– Jean-Dominique Bauby
What is speech-language therapy?
Speech-language therapy involves the study, diagnosis and treatment of disorders that relate to speech, language, swallowing, fluency, voice, and communication, particularly aspects of language that is heard and read, said and written.
A speech-language therapist is trained to help people who struggle with communication disorders because of developmental delays, strokes, brain injuries, learning disabilities, cognitive impairment, cerebral palsy, hearing loss, autism and other problems that can affect communication. People who experience problems with stuttering, speaking clearly, swallowing, and other tasks that make communicating challenging can make use of the services of a speech-language therapist in order to overcome such obstacles.
By using standardized tests and assessment tools, a speech-language therapist can diagnose the specific communication difficulties of each person. After diagnosing the problem, the speech-language therapist devises a treatment plan that suits the needs of each specific person that needs assistance.
Early intervention is the best bet for children with early language delay and disorder.
There are some early warning signs or ‘red flags’ that speech therapists try to look for when evaluating a very young child:
- Poor eye contact
- Poor imitation skills
- Disinterest in paired games like “peek-a-boo”
- Disinterest in people and the environment
- Not responding to sound
- Short attention span
- Difficulty with eating various foods
- Aggressive behaviours / tantrums
Inappropriate play behaviours (i.e. inability to complete a puzzle, not placing action on objects, disinterest in age appropriate toys)
Quick Checklist
When should a parent refer a child to speech therapy?
More about adult neurological communication difficulties
Any individual encountering problems with their communication, language and swallowing may benefit from speech and language therapy. The neuro department at Reconnect Lifestyle Hearing & Speech Therapy Solutions: Heidi Allan’s Practice diagnoses and treats a variety of disorders resulting from brain injury, cardiovascular accidents (strokes) or other degenerative neurological conditions.
Therapy usually entails individual training and education to help an individual overcome or compensate for any of their difficulties. This therapy may take place in the acute phase of care, immediately post injury/condition, as well as during later rehabilitation stages where residual fall outs resulting from the injury/condition may be addressed. Family support is also part of the process right from the first meeting.
Heidi Allan’s Practice, we offer speech therapy for all ages – from infants to adults. Our therapy sessions are tailored to meet each patient’s individual needs.
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