On-site training in Speech & Hearing Clinic sets UC’s programs apart

Under faculty supervision, College of Allied Health Sciences students take the lead in serving the community at the clinic, centrally located in the Health Sciences Building alongside their classrooms.

The clinic offers a wide range of speech, language and hearing services for children and adults. Free, comprehensive hearing exams are available to anyone in the Greater Cincinnati community, with all speech services and most audiology equipment provided well below average cost. It’s also now the world’s largest clinic using ultrasound to provide visual biofeedback during articulation therapy for the letter R, which is a specialized type of speech therapy that helps correctly position the tongue, teeth and lips to produce one of the most complex sounds in the English language.

For many students, the clinic itself is a deciding factor.

"When I was applying, I chose UC because I was ready to learn skills in the classroom and apply them in the clinic the same week," said Nina Holzaepfel, a second-year AuD student from near Athens, Ohio. 

She was also drawn to UC's three-year, nine-semester accelerated program. Coursework in both programs is designed to develop clinical and academic skills concurrently — students take didactic and clinical courses at the same time, applying new knowledge immediately. "We were jumping into clinic in week one,” she said.

SLP students working in the clinic facilitate a range of group therapies that reflect real-world practice, including the Language and Literacy Enrichment Group (LLEG), an evidence-based summer preschool program; T.A.L.K. Life, a socially interactive group focused on language, social skills and job readiness for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities; Communication Helps Achievement Together (CHAT) for adults; and a book club for adults with aphasia and apraxia of speech. A newer offering is a free Speak Out Loud group for patients with Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases. The clinic also provides individual speech and language therapy sessions for both pediatric and adult populations.

AuD students build foundational skills, including how to conduct case histories, otoscopy, tympanometry and sound booth hearing evaluations — the same free exams offered to the public. Training also covers consultations, fittings and programming for hearing aids.

Graduate students generally provide the clinic’s services under the supervision of experienced faculty.

“We tag-team with our professors and our peers,” said Dillon. “It's a collaborative effort during appointments. We help each other.”

Clinic supervisors begin by staying closely involved and then gradually step back as students gain confidence. This structure allows students to see the clinic as a safe space to make mistakes and grow. "It's a supportive environment," Beard said. "We receive constructive feedback and a lot of resources to help us work with our clients. We build a strong rapport with clients."

Faculty investment extends beyond the clinic. All students noted that professors take the time to know them both personally and academically. For AuD students, this includes guidance on externships, which take place during the program's final year. The accelerated program begins in the summer to keep students aligned with the national timeline for their externship year.

Featured image at top: From left to right: Laurika du Plessis, second-year SLP student; Madison Burton, second-year SLP student; and Olivia Beard, second-year SLP student, inside the Speech & Hearing Clinic on a day called “Bring Your BFF to Clinic”. Photo/Provided by Olivia Beard.