Speech Therapy
Speech and language pathologists (SLPs) work to prevent, assess, diagnose, and treat speech, language, social communication, cognitive-communication, and swallowing disorders in children and adults.
Blue Sky speech and language therapy focuses on communication skills that support the adult patient’s return to daily living. Household, community and workforce speech and language skills are essential to quality of life. We begin with a thorough assessment of needs and a well developed plan for targeting needed communication skills. These efforts are carried out with a collaborative approach involving the therapist, patient, family and/or caregiver.
Speech and Language Disorders
Speech disorders occur when a person has difficulty producing speech sounds correctly or fluently (e.g., stuttering, mumbling) or has problems with his or her voice, or resonance.
Language disorders are involved when a person has trouble understanding others (receptive language), or sharing thoughts, ideas, and feelings (expressive language). Language disorders may be spoken or written.
Social Communication Disorders
Social communication disorders happen when a person has trouble with the social use of verbal and nonverbal communication. All individuals with autism spectrum disorder have social communication difficulties. Individuals with other conditions, such as traumatic brain injury, may also have social communication problems.
Cognitive-communication disorders include problems organizing thoughts, paying attention, remembering, planning, and/or problem-solving.
Swallowing disorders (dysphagia) are feeding and swallowing difficulties, which may follow an illness, surgery, stroke, or injury.