When Eating and Speaking are Difficult

Speech and swallowing therapy at Memorial Hospital can help.

Many people have conditions for which they need help speaking or swallowing. The speech therapy team at Memorial Hospital can help. Rachell Harris, M.S., CCC/SLP, a Memorial speech pathologist, says she and her colleagues help people with:

Parkinson’s disease Stroke, TIA or changes in mental status Difficulty with speech or swallowing Throat or laryngeal cancer Difficulty expressing needs/wants Developmental delays Stuttering or fluency problems Feeding problems starting at birth Cerebral palsy Down syndrome Multiple sclerosis Vocal fold paralysis Vocal cords damaged by surgery or trauma

The team helps people in three places, depending on the treatment they need.

1. In the hospital. If someone has a stroke, for example, he or she may have paralysis on one side of the body. “They may not be able to communicate or to eat,” says Harris. Working with a speech therapist, they can learn to exaggerate their speech to compensate for slurring and they can learn specific exercises to help with swallowing.

2. In rehab. Often, people are medically stable after a hospital stay, but they aren’t yet well enough to take care of themselves at home. Acute rehab gives them a chance to regain the skills they need to go home, with a minimum of three hours of interdisciplinary (physicial, occupational and speech-language) therapies a day.

3. Outpatient. People who are living at home and able to get out can visit HealthPlex for individual therapy appointments. “They need additional support—maybe they haven’t met all their goals,” Harris explains.

By Stephanie Thurrott