Speech therapist profession: pros and cons

With the development of modern technologies in the field of medicine and psychology, a very interesting profession - a speech therapist - is gaining immense popularity. Let's find out what kind of specialist he is, what tasks he solves and what are the advantages of working as a speech therapist.

Who are speech therapists?

These are specialists who correct speech defects using various corrective techniques. They work with both children and adults. For example, very often elderly people who have suffered a stroke lose their speech abilities, in such cases one profession becomes irreplaceable - a speech therapist! It is he who draws up an individual treatment plan, according to which such deficiencies of speech as bursting, stuttering or lisping are eliminated. Almost all young children have similar problems, as they grow up, many of them go away by themselves, but some need special help.

How did this profession come about?

Speech therapist is a relatively new specialty, it appeared about 50-60 years ago, when people stopped believing that problems with pronunciation were related to physical disabilities. Western doctors were the first to determine the nature of the manifestation of speech defects and from the middle In the twentieth century, psychological methods began to be used to eliminate them. Modern techniques allow you to achieve very impressive results in a short time.

The profession of speech therapist-defectologist: features and social significance

It is necessary to make out what type of profession this specialty belongs to. It is believed that a speech therapist is a person who combines a talented teacher and an experienced doctor. He must accurately determine the cause of the speech defect and competently draw up effective exercises and techniques to eliminate problems. To do this, a professional speech therapist should thoroughly know how human physiology works, in particular the structure of the speech system and the pathologies associated with it. In addition, a good specialist must have special skills, for example, the ability to do to relax the muscles of the larynx and other organs of the pharynx.

It can be said without exaggeration that a speech therapist is the profession of the future. After all, it is he who teaches people to speak correctly, and speech is the most important component of the communications of all mankind: thanks to it, we can communicate with others, share thoughts and transmit information.

Often, a person who has speech disorders feels inferior, he may have serious complexes that negatively affect his whole life. That is why the profession of "speech therapist" is irreplaceable, these specialists eliminate many speech defects, teach how to pronounce sounds correctly and thereby practically change the fate of a person. In addition, they also provide psychological assistance: they help to integrate into society, adapt a person to social life and contribute to his development in terms of self-improvement.

What qualities should a speech therapist have?

Essentially, a speech therapist is a kind of teacher who must show great patience and understanding to his students. The most important character traits are love for children, patience, emotional restraint, calmness, curiosity, perseverance, perseverance and endurance, because the results of the work done often make you wait a very long time. Some people have to deal with for more than 2-3 years in order to achieve visible improvements.

If it is easier to work with children, because they learn quickly, then the situation is different with adults. Few are able to admit their flaws and go to a specialist. For this reason, a professional speech therapist should be able to find an individual approach to everyone, be able to tactfully clarify the problem and, without hurting the patient's feelings, provide initial counseling. Consequently, a specialist will not hurt to know at least the basics of human psychology.

A speech therapist should be responsible, because he has no right to make a mistake in making a diagnosis. If he incorrectly identifies the problem and prescribes an ineffective treatment method, then this can turn into a real tragedy for patients: speech defects tend to lose their ability to correct over time, so it is very important to eliminate the shortcomings in time. Over time, it will be much more difficult to get rid of them, which is why the speech therapist has such a great responsibility.

Where to study as a specialist?

There are many options where you can get a profession (speech therapist or defectologist) on different conditions. Usually, this specialty is taught in higher educational institutions: these can be universities or institutes with a pedagogical or humanitarian direction. The education of a speech therapist must necessarily be special, i.e. the presence of a higher education diploma in a relevant or related profession is a must.

After completing the first courses, many students begin to understand that they made a mistake with the choice of a profession and want to change it. For such, another option is possible to obtain an education in the specialty of "speech therapy". The easiest way is to take intensive courses for the training of speech therapists-defectologists. However, in order to get a job in the civil service, you will need a higher special education diploma.

Employment

Despite the fact that every year a huge number of speech therapists are graduated from universities throughout the country, the need for these specialists is only increasing. This is primarily due to improvements in state social programs aimed at providing free assistance to children with disabilities.

After graduating from institutes or universities, young specialists have the opportunity to get a job in various institutions. The most popular of them are kindergartens, polyclinics, children's development centers with logogroups, schools with a functioning logotype center. Rehabilitation hospitals for the elderly and, of course, private treatment centers.

There are many advantages to working in kindergartens: an opportunity to contact children and get to know them better, a fixed schedule, as well as communication with colleagues and a pleasant environment.

The disadvantages of the profession of a speech therapist, if he works in state polyclinics, are associated with filling out various documentation. Sometimes it takes more time to process it than directly to classes with patients. By standards, a specialist should work 18-20 hours a week, which is not much compared to other specialties.

The profession is a speech therapist. Pros and cons of working

This is a very demanding job that requires a lot of patience and love for what you do. Let's take a closer look at the main advantages of this profession. So, here are the main pros:

• a short working day - 4 hours, for many it is a great opportunity to combine work and what they love;
• - this means that the speech therapist will enjoy the work done;
• long vacation - almost all summer;
• self-improvement - this profession involves the constant self-development of a person, reading educational literature, attending various thematic conferences, where, together with colleagues, you can discuss the latest methods of treating speech disorders.

And of course, such an advantage of speech therapists as the ability to conduct private practice cannot be excluded from the list. And what are the disadvantages?

Underwater rocks

Thanks to the free schedule, which is set by the specialist himself, this profession can seem attractive. However, it has many specific features, which for some may turn into disadvantages. Here are the most obvious disadvantages of this profession:

• emotionally difficult work, because patients are mainly children with various deviations and diseases (with Down's syndrome, etc.);
• the need to fill out the reporting documentation at non-working hours, that is, speech therapists do not receive an increase to the main one for maintaining documents in state institutions;
• there is no guarantee that the work done will bring any results, so many speech therapists face tremendous disappointment, so they need perseverance and resilience to continue their treatment sessions.

Who else needs speech therapists?

Very often speech therapists-defectologists begin to engage in private practice, providing assistance to a wide variety of people. In addition to children with speech impairments, elderly people who have suffered a stroke and even professional actors also seek help.

If you decide that this is your vocation - the profession of "speech therapist", reviews about it should be carefully studied, and it is from the professionals themselves. Judging by the messages on various thematic forums, this is an extremely difficult job that requires complete dedication. The main advantage is the opportunity to engage in private lessons with children or adults, for example, giving lessons in public speaking to novice actors or managers of trading companies.