Speech-Language Pathologists or SLPs are an integral part of an Autism team and can work hand in hand with any Behavioral Approach for children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders.
Children who struggle to learn speech and language may also be also at risk of reading and writing difficulties when they enter school. Early identification and intervention have been proven to be effective.
Just like with Behavior Therapy, the sooner the Speech Therapy services are provided, allowing for the best results and more remarkable long-term outcomes. Furthermore, one of the reasons that the children with Autism improve the most in Behavior Therapy is mostly those who also get services from their Speech-Language Pathologist regularly.
Collaboration between a Board-Certified Behavior Consultant/Behavior Consultant and a Speech and Language Pathologist.
The advantage of a multi-disciplinary team is that once your child’s Speech therapist determine a course of action for their therapy sessions, they usually meet with the rest of the Behavior Therapy team to make sure they are all on the same page regarding the intervention goals for the child and the family. In a clinic-based setting, the collaboration is always possible to ensure that your child is making progress in every area, from Behavior Consultation/Intervention, Occupational therapy, Speech and Language therapy, and between all the professionals involved.
Some of the questions you may want to ask your BCBA or your Behavior Consultant, next time you meet with them are:
- Does your clinic-based or home-based Behavior Team have a Speech-Language Pathologist/s?
- Will the recommendations by the Speech Therapist, integrated within the Behavior Plan of Intervention (BPI) for my child?
- Will my child’s Speech therapist be allowed working cohesively with the Behavior Therapy professionals like Behavior Interventionist?
- Will the Speech-Language pathologist work directly with my child?
- What will a typical Speech therapy session look like?
- How involved can I be in my child’s speech therapy?
- What can I do to practice the strategies used by my child’s Speech therapist at home?
- How often will my child see the Speech- Language Pathologist?
Speech and Language Pathologists are an integral part of any Multi-Disciplinary therapy clinic that caters to children diagnosed with Autism and play a vital role within the Behavior services too.
If you would like to learn more about our multi-disciplinary assessment service, do not hesitate to contact [email protected] or call us at 778-395-8752.
