Speech Therapy

Our speech language pathologists at Bryan outpatient rehabilitation evaluate and treat speech, language, cognition, voice and swallowing abilities. All therapists have at minimum a master's degree and have completed a clinical fellowship.

Speech Language Pathologists Treat

Speech

A speech testing and treatment focuses on how well you can speak. For example whether you stutter or slur your words; how many words you can say; and how the muscles of your tongue, lips and throat that help you speak are working.

Language

Testing and treatment includes understanding spoken words and communicating – either by speaking or other forms of communication.

Memory and Problem Solving

Cognitive testing means testing how you think - including awareness, memory, and problem solving abilities. Treating cognitive issues may involve re-learning these skills or learning new ways to compensate for skills lost, such as setting an alarm to remember to take your medications. The speech therapy department works closely with the Bryan West Campus trauma program.

Swallowing

Evaluation and treatment includes looking at how the tongue and throat muscles coordinate with breathing to safely get food and liquids from the mouth to the stomach. We want to prevent breathing foods and liquids into the lungs which may cause pneumonia. With a doctor’s order, the speech language pathologist can complete a swallow test, which is a video X-ray of your swallow. Using this information, the therapist can see if food or liquids are getting into your lungs, why it is happening and how it can be treated. Treatment to improve swallowing may include modifying foods and liquids or using VitalStim. VitalStim is an FDA-approved method of treating swallowing problems, using a special form of electrical stimulation to train the muscles to swallow better. Speech therapists at Bryan use this technique along with others to improve swallowing so you can again eat and drink what you like.

Voice

We evaluate and treat various disorders of communication related to:

• Raspy, hoarse or harsh-sounding voice
• Loudness
• Pitch

The therapists at Bryan may use the electroglottograph. This computerized equipment tells us if the vocal cords are effectively opening and closing.

Treatment

Treating cognitive issues may involve re-learning life skills or learning new ways to compensate for skills lost - such as setting an alarm to remember to take your medications.