ASHA Voices

This conversation was originally published in August 2021. Clients need to feel that they are valued and respected, and for gender-diverse clients, this often begins with the language we use. The consequences of not showing this respect can be large. They can even lead to negative client outcomes, as our guest today shares. SLP Greg Robinson is a faculty member at the University of Arkansas for Me...

On this episode of the podcast, we’re joined by SLP Wendy Olsen for a conversation of interest to SLPs in health care. Olsen discusses the effects of opioids on respiration and how collaboration may be the key to meeting patients’ needs.   Olsen is a post-doctoral researcher at the Breathing Research and Therapeutic Center at the University of Florida. The interprofessional research center focuses...

Two SLPs invite you to rethink your approach to swallowing disorders. Ed Bice and Alicia Vose advocate for taking the fear out of dysphagia treatment—starting with the language we use. In recognition of Dysphagia Awareness Month, we hear their insights on the words they choose and how they approach conversations with physicians. We also discuss what a person-centered approach looks like, and why i...

In this episode, we feature two SLPs who have been interviewed on the podcast. We’ll hear from the voices behind the words on the page: an SLP whose children’s book is equal parts personal and professional and a school-based SLP collecting and sharing real-life stories of cultural responsiveness.

It’s graduation season at many colleges and universities, and ASHA Voices is taking the occasion to look forward and explore the pipeline into the professions. What might the future of CSD look like? Increasing diversity, representation, and inclusion in the pipeline through colleges and universities continues to be critical. On this episode of the podcast, we’ve gathered three leaders from CSD pr...

You’ve surely read the headlines: Bruce Willis is stepping away from acting due to the effects of aphasia. Amidst the many career retrospectives and heartfelt appreciations of him online are scores of articles offering varying definitions and explanations of his condition. SLP Fabi Hirsch joins the podcast for a conversation about this complex disorder, and her work with public figures who have it...

From University of Pittsburgh, audiologist Elaine Mormer and pharmacist Lucas Berenbrok say the forthcoming over-the-counter hearing aids could create new opportunities for both professions. They say it’s important for pharmacists to be able to spot hearing health “red flags.” Find out why, and how that help spurs more referrals to audiologists.

Gayla Poling, director of diagnostic audiology research at Mayo Clinic, joins the podcast to discuss ototoxicity and the role audiologists play in preventing and managing medication-related hearing loss, tinnitus, and vestibular issues. Poling describes her work co-leading subgroups on aminoglycosides and cancer treatment as a part of the International Ototoxicity Management Group. The interprofes...

This conversation was originally published in September 2021. Often associated with race and socioeconomic status, health care disparities can have a devastating impact. The disparities affect everything from finances to health care outcomes. Guests explain how the COVID-19 pandemic has drawn public attention to disparities in care that have always existed. And they say everyone has a role to pla...

The promise of gene therapy is immense. But as today’s guest points out, so, too, are the challenges. Audiologist and molecular biologist O’neil Guthrie (Northern Arizona University) says the way gene therapy is discussed in the media and by the public may be setting unrealistic expectations for this pioneering therapy. He joins the podcast to explain why gene therapies can be so difficult to crea...

More than two years into the pandemic, we are only beginning to learn about the long-term effects of SARS-CoV-2. Those living with “long COVID” may experience multiple symptoms, including fatigue, shortness of breath, and brain fog. Today on the podcast, we’re joined by Joel VanEaton (Broad River Rehab) and Mary Kennedy (Chapman University) to discuss what clinicians may need to know about the eme...

Tel Aviv University’s Karen Avraham joins the podcast to discuss her genetics research. She shares what it’s like to find hearing loss genes and how her discoveries may connect to the future of hearing loss treatment.

In our first of two episodes looking at gene therapy and hearing loss, we revisit two conversations with researchers at the forefront of this groundbreaking research. Hear updates on how their work has developed since these conversations first took place.   Boston Children’s Hospital’s Jeff Holt discusses an unexpected discovery that tied a specific gene to a genetic form of hearing loss. And Stan...

SLP Cheryl Hersh (Mass General Brigham) discusses environmental and social factors that can hinder health care outcomes—social determinants of health. Hersh works as a part of a team treating pediatric feeding disorder, and she shares how awareness of these aspects of patients’ lives, like food access and housing, can make a difference when it comes to health care outcomes. She talks through what...

Our guests, SLPs Kyomi Gregory-Martin and Janna Oetting, join the podcast to discuss dialects, like African American English or Southern White English, in the schools. Their 2016 article “Changing How Speech-Language Pathologists Think and Talk About Dialect Variation” asks SLPs to alter this perspective on dialects to better serve children in the schools. They share tips and advice for school-bas...

When a child is having difficulty eating, it can take a toll on the entire family. The effect is immense, and it can create issues that affect the mind and body while spurring feelings of guilt in parents. We’re joined by an interdisciplinary team from Children’s Wisconsin, a pediatric health center, for a discussion about the teamwork behind treating pediatric feeding disorder. Team members also...

An expert panel of audiologists and health researchers answer questions about the overlap between populations at risk for hearing loss and opioid misuse, guidance on how to address this sensitive subject with patients, and the role pandemic-induced isolation is playing in opioid misuse.

We speak to a mother who adopted a son with prenatal opioid exposure, and we hear from her Marshall University colleague, a researcher whose conversations with school-based speech-language pathologists reveal where the opioid epidemic may be showing up on caseloads. They say that the effects of prenatal opioid exposure can last beyond infancy and early childhood, with children presenting character...

As we look towards 2022, and 2021 ends, we hear from members sharing both gratitude and grief—from voices you may recognize. Plus, in the spirit of reflection, retiring ASHA CEO Arlene Pietranton takes a bow. After 18 years leading the association, Pietranton shares stories and reflects on the mission that’s sustained her service.

Rachel Archambault was an SLP at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School when the school became the site of the deadliest high school shooting in U.S. history. The Parkland, Florida, students who were freshmen during that shooting are now graduating, and in the years since the shooting, Archambault became an advocate for trauma-informed practice, sometimes called trauma-informed care. Archambault joi...

Recorded at the 2021 ASHA Convention, the NCAA men's basketball champion and NBA vet joins the podcast to share his personal story and experiences, including his decision to self-disclose his stutter during the NCAA Tournament. Kidd-Gilchrist also discusses his advocacy work for people who stutter through his initiative Change and Impact. The nonprofit focuses on helping those who stutter access s...

Hear three highlights from the podcast in 2021. From the Navajo Nation to the boxing ring to the silver screen, we revisit stories that stayed with us.

We take an in-depth look at accent modification and hear an array of perspectives on a service approach that's also a source of controversy.  Central to this conversation are questions about the voice and identity: In the fight against linguistic discrimination, could accent modification be a tool to repel inequity, or could it instead perpetuate it?  We’ll hear from an SLP who wrote a book on acc...

Discerning speech in a noisy environment requires practice, and it can take years for children to hone their ability to maximize their auditory system. Award-winning researcher Lauren Calandruccio joins the podcast to discuss auditory perception in noisy environments, like the classroom. She tells us about the experiments she conducted into how children perceive sound, and we h...

This conversation was originally published in February 2021. In honor of International Stuttering Awareness Day on October 22, we’re presenting an encore publication of our episode on stuttering representation and visibility. We hear from SLP Chris Constantino, a faculty member at Florida State University. Constantino talks about what he’s heard from his clients and shares what the inauguration of...