Information for Consumers of
Speech-Language Hearing Services
Consumers
should inquire about the background and fees of any professional offering
speech-language-hearing services. Minimal standards for such professionals
are the Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) from the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA), supervised clinical practicum,
and receipt of a passing score on a national examination.
Speech-language hearing clinicians working
in the state of Colorado who are members of CSHA are listed in
the CSHA
"Find A Clinician" Directory. Many
competent, duly certified clinicians in Colorado have chosen not
to be members of CSHA. CSHA members are sworn to follow the CSHA
Ethics Code (read it
HERE),
in addition to the ethics code of the American Speech-Language
Hearing Association.
Questions for Speech-Language and Audiology
Clinicians
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What age groups do you work with?
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Do you work primarily with a particular speech,
language, or hearing disorder?
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How soon can I be seen for an evaluation?
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Once I am evaluated is there a waiting list for
treatment? If so, how long is it?
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If you cannot work with me, who would you suggest
I contact?
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Do I need to be referred to your clinic by a
particular source such as a community agency?
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Once I have been evaluated will you be able to
anticipate the amount of time needed to correct my problem?
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Do you dispense/sell hearing aids, augmentative
and alternative communication (ACC) devices, or fluency aids? If not, will
you help me get one from another source?
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Do you provide auditory training, lip/speech
reading and/or hearing aid orientation for the new hearing aid
user? Do you provide training in the use of ACC devices or
fluency aids?
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If needed, will you be able to recommend an
assistive listening device that will best suit my needs?
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Do you provide day classes for children with
language disorders?
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How much do you charge for diagnostic evaluations
and treatment services?
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What sources of third party payment may be
available to me? (Medicare, Medicaid, private insurers, UMW,
CHAMPUS, Vocational Rehabilitation)
-
Are all of your speech-language pathologists or
audiologists certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing
Association?
Information on Speech-Language Hearing
Disorders
When searching for a clinician or after
receiving a diagnosis, parents and patients may wish to obtain
information from a variety of sources. Information on many
speech-language and hearing conditions is not available from
books intended for lay readers. Thus, information from the
Internet Web sites, national non-profit organizations, and
government sources may be the best alternative. CSHA has
compiled a list of some of these information sources on our
Web
Links directory.
Charges for Speech-Language
Pathology and Audiology Services
May include:
- Scheduled training sessions
(therapy, consultations, visits)
- Materials used in program
- Time spent in scoring tests,
evaluation results, and planning individualized programs
- Periodic reports to doctors,
teachers, family, Medicare, Medicaid, insurance companies
- Maintenance of charts and
records
- Communication with and
referral to other agencies
- Counseling/Communication with
family and other professionals working with client/patient
Contact each facility directly
regarding their treatment charges and billing procedures. If you are
seeking services for a child, you are reminded that services are available
in the public schools. Furthermore, every school district in Colorado is
responsible for identifying and evaluating any person, from birth through
21, with an handicapping condition (mild to severe). This program is
sometimes referred to as "child-find" or
"child-check." Call your local school district for further
information. |