Philosophy Statement

During one of my graduate courses, my professor organized a panel of parents who

have children with special needs and were willing to answer our questions about what everyday

life looks like for them. This interested me as I was always curious about the parent’s

perspective on the services his or her child received from speech-language pathologists and

other providers. A question posed by my colleague was something to the effect of, “What has

been the most frustrating experience you have had working with different providers?” One of the

parents responded by discussing how providers only see Autism when they see his or her child

instead of seeing them as an individual. This parent elaborated by explaining that their child’s

therapist always brought the conversation back to autism no matter what aspect of services

provided were being discussed, instead of looking at the child’s specific needs and capabilities. I

felt frustration for this parent. In a way, the therapist was doing the family a disservice by going

into evaluation and treatment with such preconceived notions of what the child would be like

and what therapy techniques would work best solely based on a diagnosis. It was at this point in

my graduate career that my philosophy for providing treatment was formed. My philosophy for

providing treatment is that each child, regardless of diagnosis, is a unique individual and that the

intervention should reflect his or her uniqueness. My hope is to carry out this philosophy while

working within the Early Intervention system or elementary school system. In this reflection, I will

further discuss experts in the field of speech-language pathology who also believe this

uniqueness should be held paramount, therapy models that take into account the uniqueness of

the individual, and how my philosophy ties into evidence-based practice and providing culturally

competent services.

Juliann Woods, an established researcher and Early Intervention provider in the field of

speech-language pathology, wrote an article in the ASHA Leader titled Providing Early

Intervention Services in Natural Environments, highlighting how “natural environment

intervention” allows the content of intervention to be easily modified to meet the specific needs
of the child. She speaks about how this type of intervention is easily geared toward the

individual as it takes place in environments important to the family and with tools the family

already has, such as the child’s favorite toys. Therefore, the set-up of the Early Intervention

system is optimal for providing individualized services, which is one of the reasons I enjoy this

setting. (Woods, 2008)

In completing a clinical placement co-providing services with a licensed speech-

language pathologist working in the Early Intervention system, I learned all about implementing

the coaching model that has been adopted by the state of Virginia as evidence-based practice.

The coaching model has several parts, two of which I would like to highlight. The first part is

creating a joint plan, allowing the family to voice what they would like to focus on during the

session. The second is observation, which gives the family a chance to demonstrate what

they’ve been working on while the therapist is not present. In all, the utilization of this model is a

great way to incorporate the unique values, beliefs, and needs of the child and his or her

family. (Rush, & Shelden, 2005)

Marilyn Nippold, a school-based speech-language pathologist and scholar in adolescent

language development and disorders, wrote an article in the ASHA Leader titled Different

Service Delivery Models for Different Communication Disorders. In this article, she discusses

the importance of individualizing the type and frequency of services provided in the schools.

She states that most children are taken out of class, which is referred to as the pull-out model,

for 20 to 30 minutes twice a week for speech therapy without taking into account the unique

needs of their communication disorder. In adhering to this set schedule, she argues that we are

not individualizing services. (Nippold, 2012)

In completing my educational placement course, I learned that there are several different

service delivery models, including pull out, classroom-based, indirect, consultative, and modal

services. Therefore, as a practicing speech-language pathologist, I will consider all the delivery

models along with varying the frequency and duration of services provided based upon the
unique needs of the individual when forming his or her Individualized Education Plan. The

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) even states that deciding on a

service delivery along with the frequency and duration of services on a case-by-case basis is

evidence-based practice within the school setting by stating that “Combining service delivery

models allows the SLP to focus on the individual needs of students, ensure the educational

relevance of speech-language services, and reflect on treatment effectiveness.” (ASHA, n.d.)

This statement reiterates my philosophy and the need for individualized services.

In both the Early Intervention and school-based setting, I will be coming into contact with

culturally and linguistically diverse clients and families. I can apply my philosophy of

individualizing services to these populations by not making any assumptions about his or her

beliefs simply because he or she is from a certain culture or adhere to a specific religion.

Instead, I will get to know his or her unique values and beliefs, which may or may not align with

the norms of culture or religion. In this way, I hope to build rapport with the families I serve and

show them I respect their unique traditions and beliefs.

In conclusion, I firmly believe that individualizing services will give my clients the tools

they need to make the necessary gains from speech therapy. Additionally, individualizing

services will assist me in building rapport with my clients as it shows that I care about and

respect his or her unique values and beliefs. Overall, I feel encouraged to be part of a

profession that gives me the privilege to use my use my clinical judgement when providing

services.
 References

Nippold, M. (2012). Different service delivery models for different communication

disorders. The ASHA Leader. (43) 2, 117-120.

Rush, D. D., & Shelden, M. L. (2005). Evidence-based definition of coaching

practices. CASEInPoint, 1 (6), 1-6

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. (n.d.). School-based

service delivery in speech-language pathology. Retrieved from

https://www.asha.org/SLP/ schools/School-Based-Service-Delivery-in-Speech-

Language-Pathology/

Woods, J. (2008). Providing early intervention services in natural environments. The

ASHA Leader. 13 (4), 12-23.