Speech and Language Therapists are clinical experts in the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of communication, and swallowing disorders. These difficulties may be as a result of a number of conditions including:
- Progressive neurological diseases e.g. Parkinson’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, Motor Neurone Disease.
- Dementia
- Head injury / Traumatic brain injury
- Cancer of the head, neck and throat
- General debilitation due to the ageing process
Speech and Language Therapists work in partnership with the individual, family and other professionals to reduce the impact of the communication and/or swallowing difficulty on the person’s health, wellbeing and ability to participate in everyday life. They also input into the assessment of a patient’s mental capacity in order that patient’s best interests are properly served.
There is an open referral policy which allows written referrals to be accepted from a variety of professionals including GPs, community nurses, care home staff, social services, active case managers, and other allied health professionals. Self-referrals are also accepted for communication.