The Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) is an interdisciplinary early intervention approach to autism that aims to alleviate symptoms of autism and accelerate children’s development. Read More
Category: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) refers to a developmental disability that ranges from mild to severe. It is characterized by impairments in communication and social skills as well as difficulties reacting to the environment. Not all characteristics are equally present in individuals as ASD presents itself differently in each person.
Contemporary Approaches to Intervention: Communication Passports
Communication passports are a useful communication device for those who cannot easily speak for themselves as they present information in an “easy-to-follow” format that makes it possible to get thoughts across. The advantage of passport are that they are easy to read, informative, useful and fun. Read More
Ghana January 2014: Arrival and Immersion at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital
This morning we left Sunyani for Accra to visit and work in the largest hospital in all of Ghana. After landing in Accra we immediately boarded the bus and headed straight to the only mall in Ghana to refresh our snack supply. We headed to Korle Bu Teaching Hospital to provide speech and language therapy to both adults and children.
Upon arrival, we were introduced to the famous Albert, one of 9 speech language therapists in Ghana. We also met Clement and Josephine, two SLTs who are starting the first masters program for SLT at the University of Ghana. We split up into three groups of five students and began providing therapy. We were all nervous, but excited to begin applying our knowledge and thinking on our feet. We saw a variety of patients with varying disorders such as autism, Down syndrome, aphasia, cerebral palsy, and speech disorders. Each student was given a different role during the evaluation and we all worked together to create functional goals and techniques that would benefit each patient. We taught these techniques to the patients and caregivers so they could practice at home.
Providing therapy today was a challenging but rewarding experience! We are beginning to realize how much we have already grown and will continue to grow as clinicians throughout this trip. After leaving the hospital we had an amazing Ghanaian meal at our hotel. We all ate many helpings of chicken, fish, plantains, pasta with steamed veggies, rice and beans, and watermelon. It was delicious! We also met to discuss all the patients seen, their progress, and what lies in store for us tomorrow.
Thanks to Shannon Luckovich for the post
Ghana January 2014: Continuing to learn at Korle Bu Hospital
Today was an exciting day! We headed to Korle Bu Hospital bright and early and immediately started seeing patients. We saw many new and some old faces as some of our previous patients came back for a second or even third day of therapy. Throughout the day we continued to work with patients with autism, language delay, articulation disorder, hearing impairments, vocal fold paresis, and patients who have suffered from a stroke.
We were then whisked away to go see a cleft palate surgery in small groups! Dr. Ampomah, head of ENT at Korle Bu Hospital, warmly welcomed us into his operating room and we stood elbow to elbow with him as he operated! During the surgery, Dr. Ampomah made sure to explain the process and his every step. We eagerly looked on and excitedly recognized various structures and anatomy of the mouth. This was a once in a life time opportunity that we will always remember!
After our busy day at Korle Bu hospital we headed to a local Ghanaian market in Accra to do some shopping. We ended the day with a talk from the famous Albert, one of the amazing SLT’s we work with in Ghana, and his son Pius. Albert shared his story about becoming a speech language therapist, while Pius discussed both the challenges and rewards of being a doctor in Ghana. Afterwards, we reviewed cleft palate to prepare for our exciting day at the cleft palate conference tomorrow!
Thanks to Eleni Gkikas and Allison Lekich for the post.
Ghana Summer 2013: The surgeon is the teacher
Today we continued our work at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital. We spent the morning working with a variety of patients, some of whom were returning to follow up with either the Speech Language Pathologist at Korle Bu or for continued evaluation from our students. We genuinely enjoyed learning from the wide range of patients and their families. We were able to assess and then provide recommendations for children with language delays, autism spectrum disorder, other intellectual disabilities, and even an adult voice patient.
Throughout the morning, we worked on a rotation. At any given time about three quarters of us were working directly with the patients, while the other quarter was in the midst of experiencing a very special opportunity. Dr. Ampomah, the renowned cleft palate surgeon at Korle Bu, granted us permission to observe one of his cleft palate surgeries. We went in groups directly in the operating room, in scrubs, booties, head covers, masks and all. This was a learning experience that we would never have been so privileged to receive in the US and Dr. Ampomah was a wonderful and engaging teacher.
As each new group of students went in, Dr. Ampomah oriented us to what stage of the surgery he was at and what we were seeing anatomically. It was extraordinary to be able to look inside the mouth of a patient undergoing cleft palate surgery, watch each suture being threaded, and listen to Dr. Ampomah explaining his surgical strategies. As we observed the surgery and later discussed it amongst ourselves, some aspects that stood out included the suturing of the bifid uvula, the levator veli palatini, soft palate, hard palate, and both layers of mucosa.
It was increasingly evident to our whole group just how applicable and useful this experience would be in our work with any future patients with cleft palate and how it could contribute to our development of clinical experience and judgment. Additionally, we all felt that this would greatly contribute to our understanding of our patients from a more global perspective and we really saw the value of cooperating on a multidisciplinary team.
Ghana Summer 2013: Communication Passports
We returned to Korle Bu Hospital today and had a busy morning, doing assessments for about 15 clients. As usual, we worked with Albert but we were also joined today by Clement, a Ghanaian man trained as a speech language pathologist in the UK, and Karen Wylie, an Australian trained SLP who has been working in Ghana and around Africa for the past 10 years. Each day we gain confidence in our skills and collaborate efficiently and effectively as a group, and with other professionals. We have been working a lot on lanuage development with young children, but today we met some clients needing other types of services, including a child with cerebral palsy, a child with autism, a child who had lost his hearing due to meningitis, and an adult who had suffered a stroke. Each case was unique and while we have grown so much as clinicians in the last week, we also realize more and more how much there still is to learn.
