ASHA Voices

Speech-language pathologist Amy L. Donaldson returns to the podcast with two fellow members of Portland State University’s Autism and Social Communication Lab, SLP Brandon Eddy and AAC research lead Alyssa Hillary Zisk. When Donaldson was most recently on the podcast, she spoke about normalizing and destigmatizing AAC use. In this episode, Donaldson, Eddy, and Zisk continue with a conversation on...

Speech-language pathologist Sandra Hogsed is changing the way Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital is screening for and addressing delirium. In 2020, she saw patients entering the critical access hospital who were developing delirium. Soon after, she dedicated herself to gaining a greater understanding of the condition and how to recognize it. She shares what delirium looks like in its varying forms...

Just ahead of the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games in Minnesota, we discuss hearing health care for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, or IDD. Along with competing in events like track and field, swimming, and basketball, many athletes work with volunteers to receive hearing screenings, among other types of health screenings through attending Special Olympics Healthy Athletes®...

Speech-language pathologist Iván Campos joins the podcast to discuss multilingual assessment and intervention in the schools. Campos brings stories from his time delivering school services to students speaking Mayan languages, and he shares what he learned from that. In our conversation, he talks about dynamic assessment, collaborating with interpreters, and what the concept of translanguaging mea...

As the professional world grows increasingly mobile, hear how the Audiology & Speech-Language Pathology Interstate Compact is making it easier for CSD professionals to deliver services across state lines. Guests discuss how the compact works, who may benefit from it, how it creates greater access to services, and the story behind what they did to make it happen. Learn More: The Audiology &...

From comfort feeding to communication access, two SLPs discuss the important ways speech-language pathologists deliver services as part of palliative care teams. Sharing personal and professional stories, Brittany Horvath and Marissa James address informed consent, how SLPs can integrate themselves into palliative care teams, and more. Learn More: Dysphagia Management: Strengthening Skills, Overco...

Speech-language pathologist Claudio Milstein joins the podcast to discuss inducible laryngeal obstruction (ILO), an often misdiagnosed condition that can leave patients feeling shortness of breath. Milstein breaks down the roles of interprofessional collaboration and differential diagnosis in service delivery. Plus, he shares the story behind the new global community he’s cofounded to bring togeth...

Speech-language pathologist Jessica Donaldson explains how the neurodiversity-affirming approach of her multidisciplinary clinic, Autism Specialists, strives to create a sense of belonging, acceptance, and accessibility for autistic clients. She describes how and why she created a social group for her clients that’s directed by their interests and goals. Donaldson, the sibling of an autistic adult...

Hear ASHA members discuss how school-based audiologists and speech-language pathologists advocate for themselves, the professions, and the people they serve. On the podcast, guests share stories of what successful advocacy looks like and give a behind-the-scenes look at the work they do. All three guests are members of the ASHA Teacher Union Member Advisory Group and recently published new resourc...

SLP Stephanie Boron joins the podcast for a conversation on how she seeks and creates neurodiversity-affirming spaces through her work as a clinician, clinical instructor, and faculty member at Northwestern University. Boron describes herself as AuDHD—autistic and ADHD. On the podcast, she shares what neurodiversity-affirming spaces can look like and why they matter to clients. Learn More: ASHA Vo...

For young patients with TBIs and their families, challenges persist after hospital discharge. On the podcast, guests discuss how they address barriers associated with this transition. We’ll hear perspectives from both sides of that transition: Taryn Townsend at Texas Children’s Hospital, and Melaney Grenz, who worked for nearly three decades in the schools and as part of the Oregon TBI team. Grenz...

Three SLPs discuss multilingual service delivery in light of “translanguaging,” a concept that’s been gaining attention recently. “Translanguaging” refers to the way a speaker, often multilingual, may incorporate the “entirety of their linguistic repertoire,” possibly pulling from two or more named languages. Guests share what translanguaging sounds like, how it differs from code-switching, and wh...

Audiologist Marcia Dewey started Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin’s Tinnitus and Hyperacusis Program in 2011. Nearly 15 years later, she joins the ASHA Voices podcast to discuss the program’s origins and how chronic pain rehabilitation techniques have transformed her practice. Learn More: ASHA: Tinnitus ASHA Voices: From Surf Rocker to Research Audiologist, Jim Henry Knows Tinnitus...

When a child leaves the NICU, families and caregivers may face what’s called a “services cliff”—a point where it can be confusing or difficult to find needed services without the structure of a health care center. Hear from Sara Circelli and SLP Tiffany Elliott about their work to reshape that transition where they live and work. They share how they address barriers to services through the hospita...

Learn where to find the ASHA Leader's most popular stories from 2025, and revisit past episodes of the ASHA Voices podcast, in this short episode. Plus, we invite you to share what subjects you would like to hear discussed on ASHA Voices in 2026. Transcript ASHA Leader Highlights: Articles and Podcasts SLPs Read, Shared, and Listened the Most to in 2025 Articles and Podcasts Audiologists Read, Sha...

When people acquire a brain injury, it can lead to difficulty with communication, including the language disorder aphasia. Hear SLPs share how they use podcasting as a tool to work with people with aphasia, helping them create, host, and produce their own ongoing shows. A panel of SLPs—including Tom Sather of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Melissa Richman of the Stroke Comeback Center in...

Their voices may be familiar to you. Dakota Sharp and Carrie Spangler are both audiologists who host podcasts exploring audiology and hearing through conversation. Dakota Sharp hosts the “On the Ear” podcast , featuring conversations with audiologists and interprofessional guests, like SLPs. On ASHA’s podcast, Sharp describes the origin of the podcast and tells the story of how an episode inspired...

Three SLPs share a vision for where stuttering therapy may be headed. It’s part of a larger collection of ASHA Leader content being published in recognition of the ASHA Centennial . As a group, the guests—Farzan Irani from Texas State University, Hope Gerlach-Houck from Western Michigan University, and Nan Bernstein Ratner from the University of Maryland—will be presenting on the past, present, an...

On this short episode, we talk ASHA Convention, our podcast archive, and how you can propose ideas for 2026. Thanks for listening, and I’m looking forward to sharing more conversations with you soon. Learn More: ASHA Voices: Researchers Discuss Speech in Noisy Environments, Spatial Awareness, and Bilateral Cochlear Implants ASHA Voices Podcast Proposal Guide Transcript

For critically ill patients, what are some practical ways speech-language pathologists can address barriers to communication? Today on the podcast, we talk effective communication between critically ill patients and providers in the ICU, emphasizing the role of augmentative and alternative communication. Guests include speech-language pathologist Tami Altschuler and nursing professor Mary Beth Hap...

As an audiologist, what do you say when a patient or client asks to receive gene therapy? The headlines are certainly grabbing public interest, but what does it mean for your practice? Clinical trials and media coverage are driving interest in this novel approach to hearing loss intervention. As our guests share, so far only one gene has received clinical trials. But patients and their families ma...

When your career or your current role leaves you seeking a new challenge and something fresh, how do you make a change? Speech-language pathologist Rinki Varindani Desai joins the podcast for a conversation about nontraditional and nonclinical roles open to SLPs. And she shares how SLPs can use their skills and strengths to find new professional opportunities. Varindani Desai’s background is in me...

From patient decision-making to diet modification to interdisciplinary collaboration, guests share their experience and the trends they’re seeing shape and change dysphagia treatment. Featuring three SLPs from ASHA’s Online Conference, “Dysphagia Management: Strengthening Skills, Overcoming Obstacles,” this panel discussion addresses shifting practices related to SLPs’ role in making dietary recom...

Patients receiving burn care have dynamic and complex needs, and SLPs can provide key communication and swallowing support during the recovery process. Speech-language pathologist Tiffany Mohr of Orlando Regional Medical Center joins the podcast to discuss SLPs' growing role in burn care and improved patient outcomes. Mohr is one of the first two SLPs to join the American Burn Association’s Rehabi...

What information do we receive from the sound around us? Hear thoughts from Matt Goupell (University of Maryland) and Brian Monson (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign), who join the podcast to discuss their research, along with findings on speech in noisy environments and spatial awareness. Goupell and Monson are presenting at the 2025 ASHA Research Symposium on Hearing at the ASHA Conventio...