Speech Pathology

At the UQ Speech Pathology Clinics, we work with children through to adults to improve their ability to communicate with their family, friends, and colleagues at home, socially, and in the workplace.

In our clinics, you will receive services from speech pathology students who are being supervised at all times by a fully qualified and highly experienced speech pathologist.

Referrals are not required to attend our clinics, however, we do ask that you provide us with all relevant letters and reports from other healthcare providers to help us determine the suitability of our clinics to meet your or your child’s needs.

View terms and conditions for clinic discounts.

Our services

Speech and language therapy services for children

If your child has trouble with saying, using, or understanding words, the UQ Speech Pathology Clinic will work with you to provide support and promote positive change. Our speech pathology services are available for children aged two years through to school-aged children and teenagers.

We will work with you and your child to develop skills for successful communication. If your child is late to talk or is difficult to understand when talking, then they might need to see a speech pathologist.

Before your child starts therapy, they will need to have a detailed assessment in the speech pathology clinic. This assessment could take three to four sessions to complete. This assessment will allow us to plan a therapy approach that meets the specific needs of your child.

Therapy is typically delivered individually, and usually runs weekly over blocks of 8–16 weeks throughout the year.

We might recommend you attend one of our other clinics like the Audiology or Occupational Therapy clinic.

Fluency

We work with children and adults who stutter to help them maximise their quality of life. Our speech pathology team plan therapy using the evidence-based Lidcombe and Smooth Speech approaches.

Before you or your child starts therapy, you or they will have a detailed assessment in the speech pathology clinic. This assessment will allow us to plan a therapy approach that meets the specific needs of you or your child. Therapy is delivered individually, and usually runs weekly over blocks of 8–16 weeks throughout the year.

Literacy

We offer comprehensive assessments and treatments for school-aged children who are having trouble with their reading and writing.

Therapy is delivered individually, and usually runs weekly over blocks of 8–16 weeks throughout the year.

Speech and language services for adults with a neurological condition

We work to help those who are experiencing communication difficulties as a result of a neurological condition or incident such as stroke or Parkinson’s Disease.

We can help you if you have trouble talking or understanding others following a stroke. This includes people who have aphasia or slurred speech (dysarthria).

Before you start therapy, you will need to have a detailed assessment in the speech pathology clinic. This assessment will allow us to plan a therapy approach that meets your specific needs. Therapy can be delivered either individually or in groups, and usually runs weekly over blocks of 8–16 weeks throughout the year.

Intelligibility Enhancement (Accent modification)

We work with people who speak English as a Second language (ESL) to minimise the impact that their accent has on their ability to be understood when speaking English.

What is intelligibility enhancement or accent modification?

Intelligibility enhancement helps your clarity when speaking English. It aims to provide you with strategies to enhance your English pronunciation by softening parts of an accent that make it significantly different from a native speaker. In intelligibility enhancement, we only work on how you sound when you are speaking English. We don’t teach you English, we cannot eliminate an accent, and we won’t change how you sound when you speak other languages.

Do I need intelligibility enhancement?

If you have to repeat yourself or have trouble making yourself understood at home, university, or in the workplace, intelligibility enhancement might be beneficial.

What does therapy involve?

To have success with intelligibility enhancement therapy, you need to attend weekly speech pathology sessions and be motivated to do lots of practise at home. With dedication, you can learn the skills to improve your ability to be understood when speaking English in one block of therapy.

Voice

We work with people who are experiencing voice disorders to help them use their voices efficiently, without pain and strain.

Someone who is having trouble with their voice might experience:

Sounding hoarse, husky, croaky, or strained
Trouble projecting their voice so it can be heard easily over background noise or distance
A higher or lower pitch than other people of the same age and gender
Difficulty changing the pitch and loudness of the voice
A "tired" voice after periods of talking, or that speaking requires great effort
A tight, scratchy, or uncomfortable throat (including a need to cough or clear the throat) during or after talking

Although anyone can have a voice problem, certain groups of people are more likely to experience voice difficulties, including teachers, lecturers, singers, call centre workers, barristers, and people in the media. Approximately 60 percent of these professional voice users will have a voice problem at least once during their career.

Before seeing a speech pathologist about your voice, you will need to see an Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) specialist.