The Ohio State University Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic 141 Pressey Hall 1070 Carmack Road Columbus, OH 43210
Invest in Ohio State’s SpeechLanguage-Hearing Clinic
NONPROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE PAID COLUMBUS, OH PERMIT NO 711
The Ohio State University
Speech -Language-Hearing Clinic
Enhancing Communication: Hearing, Listening, Speaking, Learning
(614) 292-6251 TTY: (614) 292-6251 speechhearingclinic.osu.edu
Dear Alumni and Friends, Support our efforts to provide the best in speechlanguage and audiology education and services by making a donation to the Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic. Each and every gift makes a tangible difference in the lives or our students, clinicians, patients, and their families. All gifts are tax deductible as permitted by law.
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Your gift of $25 will help purchase treatment materials for the children and adults we serve in our clinic. Your gift of $100 means that children in our clinic will make more progress, as their parents will have access to support materials, homework packets, and notebooks. Your gift of $250 will allow us to purchase much needed equipment to be used in the clinic: digital recorders, hand-held electronic spellers, and more. Your gift of $500 provides our clients and their families with free subscriptions to programs such as Writing A-Z and Reading A-Z to use during treatment sessions. Your gift of $1,000 will allow 10 children access to affordable speech and language services and treatment. Your gift of $4,000 will help purchase a Neuromonics device and services for treatment of tinnitus.
It’s a Fact! The Ohio State Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic provides
Gail M. Whitelaw, PhD
consultation services to 15 school districts in central Ohio.
The clinic is
Your gift of $5,000 ensures that more of our best and brightest graduate students have the opportunity to travel to and present their research at professional conferences.
recognized nationally as providing
Your gift of $10,000 provides an assistive technology laboratory to address the needs of those with hearing loss and to educate future audiologists in providing aural rehabilitation.
cutting-edge clinical training
Your gift of $20,000 will put a state-ofthe-art tech station in every treatment room to allow digital recording, data analysis, and progressive treatment design.
and education of MA students in speech/language
Make checks payable to: The Ohio State University Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic
pathology and AuD students.
Send to: Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic, The Ohio State University, 141 Pressey Hall, 1070 Carmack Road, Columbus, OH 43210
Consequently, our graduates are in high demand.
Enhancing Communication: Hearing, Listening, Speaking, Learning
Speech -Language-Hearing Clinic The Ohio State University
UMC08548
Fall 2008
reetings! In our inaugural newsletter last year, I introduced you to the SpeechLanguage-Hearing Clinic here at Ohio State—who we are and what we do. In this newsletter, you will learn about the impact of the clinic on the quality of life for so many in central Ohio. One of the challenges for any organization is being relevant in the face of changes in the “landscape” of service needs, economic stress, and technological issues. I am proud of our ability to address these issues, which helps us thrive in our provision of clinical education, as a partner in research, and most importantly, as a provider of state-of-the-science clinical services.
• The clinic is one of few facilities in central Ohio that offers accent reduction services, critical to enhancing communication skills for university faculty, staff, and students, and for area corporations.
As many of you are aware, there is a significant shortage of speech/language pathologists and audiologists. The clinic is recognized nationally as providing cutting-edge clinical training and education of MA students in speech/language pathology and AuD students. Consequently, our graduates are in high demand. Employers expect that our students can and will assume leadership roles in developing and delivering exemplary services to people with communication disorders. (By way of example, read the enclosed story about the Ohio State “impact” on the Reynoldsburg school system.)
• The clinic has the most flexible options in central Ohio to provide state-of-the-art loaner hearing aids for trial, a critical component as both children and adults explore funding options for hearing aids.
While we continue to provide stateof-the-art services to people with communication disorders, the clinic is always striving to fill specific needs not otherwise addressed in central Ohio. The following are examples of some “niche” services that help to demonstrate our impact: • The clinic is the only facility in central Ohio to provide assessment of auditory processing disorders in adults, as part of a team with local rehabilitation specialists.
• The clinic provides consultation services to 15 school districts, filling a critical shortage of educational audiology services to school-aged children in central Ohio. • The clinic offers services that support literacy in the realm of speech/language pathology, as one of the most comprehensive programs in the area.
• The clinic is one of a small number of clinical facilities in central Ohio offering services in the area of fluency (stuttering). I am fortunate to be able to see the impact of Ohio State’s SpeechLanguage-Hearing Clinic every day, from the older adult who describes how his life has changed since being fit with hearing aids to the child who is able to communicate effectively. These are real and tangible outcomes, repeated year in and year out. An investment in the SpeechLanguage-Hearing Clinic is a great opportunity to ensure that this kind of success continues. Please take time to read the investment section of this newsletter to learn about ways in which you can play a part in the future of your community and in the professions of speech/language pathology and audiology.
Clinic News Three new faculty members join Speech and Hearing Science: Michelle Bourgeois teaches courses related to the dementia, phonetics, adult language disorders, and research evaluation. Dr. Bourgeois earned her PhD in communication disorders from the University of Pittsburgh. Her research includes the topics of interventions for dementia, quality of life, reading, TBI, caregivers, and other adult neurological populations. Eric Healy teaches in the areas of hearing science, speech science, and speech perception. Dr. Healy received his PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in cognitive psychology. His primary area of research is hearing science and speech perception. Rebecca McCauley teaches speech sound disorders, language disorders in children, fluency disorders, and research methods with an emphasis on evidence-based practice. Dr. McCauley earned her PhD in the field of behavioral sciences from the University of Chicago. Her primary research area involves the assessment and treatment of motor speech disorders, focusing on childhood apraxia of speech.
It’s a Fact!
It’s a Fact!
The Ohio State Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic is one of the few facilities
Audiology ranks in top 10 careers (U.S. News & World Report, 2008).
in central Ohio to offer services in the area of fluency (stuttering).
at Slate Ridge for several quarters, to fulfill their student teaching requirement. Another one of Griffin’s students, Nicole Weyandt, Two Reynoldsburg elementary was hired as a schools recently recognized by the full-time SLP by State Superintendent as Schools Jana Alig, princiof Promise for academic success— pal at French Run. Slate Ridge Elementary and French In 2007, Griffin Run Elementary—have quite a bit in moved into a specommon: principals with vision, pascial assignment sionate and effective teachers, acFront row (l to r): Nadine Ocock, Nicole Weyandt, Jess Conover, and Maria at Slate Ridge tive parent/community involvement, Guerra; back row (l to r): Steve Griffin, Heidi Miller, and Emie Penafiel and Maria Guerra and a rather unique relationship (current graduate students/student teachers from Ohio State’s Speechmoved from stuwith Ohio State’s Speech-LanguageLanguage-Hearing Clinic) dent teaching into Hearing Clinic. the job vacated by Griffin. Conover transitioned as tion based upon intervention and Karen Hand, Ohio State alum and well from student teaching into a prevention rather than the tradiprincipal at Slate Ridge Elementary, part-time SLP job at Slate Ridge. The tional “wait-to-fail” model of special is also a speech-language patholoReynoldsburg school district cureducation. gist (SLP). In 2005, she hired Ohio rently employs seven SLPs—four are State clinic alum Steve Griffin graduates of Ohio State’s SpeechHere is what we know. Poor readers part-time as a literacy intervention Language-Hearing Clinic. at the end of first grade are at a sigcoordinator and part-time as an SLP. nificant risk for long-term academic At the time, Griffin was teaching a What makes this relationship tick? difficulty. Research indicates that graduate-level class in Ohio State’s What makes this partnership work? there is nearly a 90% chance that Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic. If you ask the principals, Karen Hand a child will remain a poor reader Two of Griffin’s students, Jess Conand Jana Alig, they will tell you that at the end of fourth grade, if the over and Maria Guerra, were placed it’s about trainchild was a poor reader at the end ing and coming of first grade. We know more than to the job armed ever about how students learn to with the leaderread, and what happens when readship skills necesing doesn’t come easily. For the sary to “swim Reynoldsburg school district, there upstream.” If you isn’t time to wait and find out what ask Griffin, Weyhappens to these young students. andt, Conover, Rather, there is a sense of urgency and Guerra, they to intervene early and prevent these will say it’s the students from an ongoing struggle boldness of the to read. school district— its superintenAt the Ohio State Speech-Languagedent, principals, Hearing Clinic, it’s all about early and teachers—to intervention and best practices in (l to r) Jess Conover, principal Karen Hand, Maria Guerra, Nicole Weyandt, embrace a new early literacy. “The traditional ‘waitprincipal Jana Alig, and Steve Griffin model for educato-fail’ model is ineffective in identi-
Embracing Best Practices in Literacy Intervention: A Partnership Changing the Landscape
Research indicates that there is nearly a 90% chance that a child will remain a poor reader at the end of fourth grade, if the child was a poor reader at the end of first grade.
According to Reynoldsburg school principals Hand and Alig, graduates from Ohio State’s SpeechLanguage-Hearing Clinic bring to their jobs leadership skills rarely seen in young professionals in the field.
fying students at risk for literacy failure,” says JoAnn Donohue, assistant director of clinical programs and services in the clinic. “Ohio State’s clinic is unique in its emphasis on and in-depth training in early screening, monitoring, and assessment.” “Graduate students in the clinic learn how best to provide intervention for at-risk students and the benefits of evidence-based assessment and reading practices,” says Nadine Ocock, clinical supervisor for graduate students. But, there’s more to it than that. According to Reynoldsburg school principals Hand and Alig, graduates from Ohio State’s Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic bring to their jobs leadership skills rarely seen in young professionals in the field. “The student teachers and SLPs I work with from Ohio State have confidence and commitment in their work— they are passionate advocates for effective literacy practices,” says Jana Alig. Karen Hand echoes this sentiment: “All of us want to see our students succeed and having the SLPs from Ohio State as part of our team dramatically decreases the likelihood that a child will fall through the cracks.” Leadership is demonstrated in a variety of ways. For the graduate students stepping out the door and into a job, it is what prepares them to be the best advocates for their profession and their clients. For principals and teachers, it is what allows those new SLPs to become the best at their job. “We are not anonymous in their buildings,” as one young student teacher from the clinic said. No indeed.
Clinic Offers Pioneer Training and Treatment for Tinnitus Here is a staggering statistic: Fifty million Americans have tinnitus (compared to 30 million who experience hearing loss) and yet most people have little, if any, understanding of what it is and how it is treated. Moreover, many believe that tinnitus (commonly referred to as a “ringing in the ears”) is “all in the head” and consequently people suffer needlessly and without treatment. The Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic is taking the lead in fighting misperceptions about tinnitus and providing cutting-edge treatment for this condition. “We used to think that tinnitus was something patients had to get used to,” says Gail Whitelaw, clinic director and audiologist. “We now know that there is much more to understanding the problem and providing effective treatment.” People with tinnitus hear sounds that are not present in the external environment and that others cannot hear. Oftentimes, those who have this condition describe it as a “ringing in the ears” or a “buzzing and whistling sound.” However, tinnitus is more than a mild annoyance—it can be a chronic and distressing condition that can have a debilitating impact on work, family, and social
life. Ohio State’s Speech-LanguageHearing Clinic is one of only a handful of departments in the country that devotes in-depth training on tinnitus evaluation and treatment. All AuD students take a course in tinnitus and have the option to intern at both the Ohio State clinic and in the community to get hands-on experience in working with patients with tinnitus. In addition, the clinic is one of few sites selected to administer the FDA-patented Neuromonics Tinnitus Treatment, a non-invasive, compact medical device proven to significantly reduce symptoms in up to 90% of users. According to Whitelaw, the clinic currently has 15 patients actively in treatment for tinnitus using the Neuromonics. “It’s a long-term plan of treatment,” says Whitelaw. “Patients wear the Neuromonics device (much like an MP3 player) for up to nine months, for a minimum of two to four hours a day.” Patients are monitored by Whitelaw and her staff. The prognosis so far? Participants in the clinic’s tinnitus treatment program have reported significant improvement in the quality of their lives. For more information on the clinic’s tinnitus program, contact Gail Whitelaw at whitelaw.1@osu.edu.
“We used to think that tinnitus was something patients had to get used to,” says Gail Whitelaw, clinic director and audiologist. “We now know that there is much more to understanding the problem and providing effective treatment.”
Sander Flaum and Archie Griffin
Sander Flaum Receives Alumni Award Sander Flaum has made a crusade of turning difficulties into triumphs and in the process has become a mentor and motivator to students who stutter. Recently, Flaum was awarded the 2008 Ohio State Alumni Association’s Professional Achievement Award for distinguished career accomplishments and outstanding contributions to his profession. He was nominated for the prestigious award by Senator John Glenn and Annie Glenn; Gail Whitelaw and JoAnn Donohue; and Michael Schuette and Robin Jones, recent graduates and recipients of Flaum’s scholarship support for speech therapy. Congratulations, Sander!
Audiology Ranked One of Top 10 Careers For the second year in a row, audiology has been ranked one of the top 10 careers by U.S. News & World Report. Ohio State offers an undergraduate program in speech and hearing science in which students learn the fundamentals of language development and can do research on topics in the field, as well as a doctoral program that grants the AuD necessary to practice audiology. Graduates of the program have little difficulty finding employment. At the moment, the demand for audiologists far exceeds the supply and Ohio State students are in huge demand.