By: Sabrina Leviton
WHAT THEY DO
• Work with people who have a variety of speech-related disorders. • Disorders can include the inability to produce certain sounds, speech rhythm and fluency problems, and voice disorders. They also help people who want to modify accents or who have swallowing difficulties.
• Work also involves assessment, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of speech-related disorders.
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A SPEECH
PATHOLOGIST
• Diagnose the nature and extent of impairment and record and analyze speech, language, and swallowing irregularities by using written and oral tests, as well as special instruments.
• Develop individualized plans of care for patients.
• Select augmentative or alternative communication methods for their patients that could include automated devices and sign language. They also teach them to use these methods.
• Teach those with little or no speech capability how to make sounds, improve their voices, or increase their language skills to communicate more effectively.
EMPLOYMENT FACTS/REQUIRMENTS
• Speech pathologists held about 123,000 jobs in 2010.
• Approximately half of these jobs were in pre-schools and elementary and secondary schools.
• Others were in hospitals, offices, nursing care facilities, home health care services, individual and family services, outpatient care centers and child day care services. • Some were self employed and had their own private practices. • Masters Degree is needed.
• Speech pathologists working in most states must be licensed. • Some states will only license speech pathologists who have graduated from a program that is accreted by the
Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and
Speech-Language Pathology.
• Coursework includes anatomy, physiology, and the nature of certain disorders. Students receive supervised clinical training. • Also must pass the Praxis Exam of Speech Language
Pathology administered by the Educational testing service. PROJECTED OUTLOOK
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