What does a Speech Therapist do at BrightStart Pediatrics?

Speech therapy is about communication ... and more!

Speech Language Pathologists who work with medically fragile infants and children in a PPEC setting specialize in facilitating the following:

Language skills-developing vocabulary/grammar to promote understanding and expression of ideas.

• Pre-language skills-developing skills that infants acquire before they learn to speak such as cooing, babbling and functional use of object (shaking/banging rattles, locating sources of sound, making eye contact with speakers, etc.).
• Oral motor skills-strengthening the muscles needed for speech and swallowing.
• Swallowing skills-developing sucking/swallowing skills in infants and feeding/chewing/swallowing skills in toddlers and children.
• Articulation skills-improving the way children say sounds in words when they talk so that they can be better understood.
• Augmentative communication skills-teaching sign language skills, use of picture boards or communication devices to help the child communicate their basic wants/needs or more complex thoughts/ideas.
• Voice-teaching techniques to promote a functional vocal quality in children who have a hoarse, harsh or breathy vocal quality.

 

Deanne Gaydos , BrightStart Orlando

I am a Speech Language Pathologist with 19 years of experience, including 10 years in a PPEC setting. I graduated with a Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Florida in 1992. After graduation, I worked for Special Communications, Shands Rehabilitation Hospital and Shands Homecare in Gainesville, Florida. When I moved to Central Florida, I continued my work in pediatrics, including other PPEC providers, before joining BrightStart Pediatrics in 2005.