What is a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP)?
In the last few years, Alzheimer’s disease, Lou Gehrig’s disease (ALS), and stuttering all made big screen debuts in three Oscar-winning films: Still Alice, The Theory of Everything, and The King’s Speech. These films worked to raise the awareness of frequent speech, language, and cognitive disorders thousands of individuals are diagnosed with each year.
It also opened the door for greater discussion around the health care professionals who assist with the care of each disorder. These professionals, speech-language pathologists (SLPs), evaluate and treat children and adults who have difficulty with speech or language.
You may not have realized the disorders when you watched each of the films, but SLPs work with individuals who face speech, language, and cognitive disorders every day.