A–Z Service Directory

The Eastern Health Speech Pathology teams work with adults, adolescents and children with communication, thinking skills (cognition) and swallowing difficulties.

Communication difficulties may include problems with:

• Talking e.g. thinking of the right words to say
• Understanding what people are saying
• Following instructions
• Reading
• Writing
• Speech - producing the right sounds in words so that people can understand what you are saying
• A change in how your voice sounds
• Stuttering– difficulty getting your words out fluently/smoothly

Thinking skills (cognitive) difficulties may include problems with:

• Memory - remembering important events, details or things that happened recently. For example: remembering who came to visit you.
• Judgement – using common sense to make reasonable decisions. For example: you may find it hard to know when it is safe to cross the road.
• Planning – planning what you are going to do or where you are going. You may forget steps in tasks. For example: you may forget to put your socks on before your shoes.
• Attention – concentrating on things going on around you. For example: you may find it hard to watch a full episode on TV or talk to more than one person at one time.
• Problem solving – thinking about how to solve problems in a sensible way. For example: you may find it hard to think about all the information before making a decision.
• Insight - knowing what difficulties you have and what you are good at. For example: you may find it hard to know when you are doing things that are dangerous, or when you need help.

Communication and thinking (cognitive) difficulties can impact a person's ability to participate in everyday activities such as:

• Talking with your family about your day
• Following a conversation
• Ordering a meal at a busy café
• Giving a presentation at work or school
• Performing complex work tasks
• Reading the newspaper or paying bills
• Writing a letter, email or birthday and Christmas card

Swallowing problems may include:

• A change in how safe and easy it is to swallow food and drink
• Difficulty chewing or swallowing food
• Coughing when eating or drinking
• A feeling that food gets 'stuck' in your throat
• Difficulties managing particular textures of food and liquids

Communication, thinking (cognition) and swallowing problems can be caused by:

• Damage to the brain e.g. following stroke, head injury or tumour
• Other conditions affecting the brain, e.g. Dementia, Parkinson's Disease or Motor Neuron Disease
• Breathing difficulties, such as in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), or if a breathing tube (tracheostomy) is needed
• Cancer affecting the head and neck
• Difficulties present at birth e.g. cleft palate, cerebral palsy; or during childhood, e.g. learning delay or disability

The Speech Pathologist works with people and their families, carers and friends to:

• Diagnose the type of communication and swallowing difficulty
• Work with other health professionals to diagnose cognition difficulties
• Provide advice and support
• Set goals that are important and relevant to each individual and their situation, such as returning to work, living independently, communicating with family and friends, and/or safely and comfortably eating a meal
• Provide therapy to support the communication, cognitive or swallowing skills required to reach these goals