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Navigating career pathways

Navigating career pathways for working with the 0-12 month old infant population

A young infant being bottle fed.

There is no specific pathway to enter the specialised field of infant swallowing and communication. Speech Pathologists work with the 0-12 month old infant population in a diverse range of settings including early intervention and health care. Within the hospital setting Speech Pathologists can work with these infants as outpatients, inpatients and/or in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Speech Pathologists interested in working with this population are encouraged to build on their current knowledge and skills by:

  • Undertaking work experience in various settings with Speech Pathologists working with the 0-12 month population.
  • Reading position papers related to paediatric swallowing and communication difficulties. The "Speech Pathology Australia - Position Papers" link has the current position papers available on paediatric swallowing and communication difficulties (Speech Pathology Australia, 2009). [ log in required ]
  • Attending professional development seminars on paediatric swallowing and communication difficulties. The "Speech Pathology Australia - Continuing Professional Development" link contains current professional development seminars which are presented in Victoria (Speech Pathology Australia, 2009).
  • Registering for web/telephone seminars through the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) related to paediatric swallowing and communication difficulties. The "ASHA - Web/Telephone Seminars" link contains a list of live and recorded seminars on a variety of Speech Pathology topics (ASHA, 2009).
  • Joining special interest groups related to paediatric swallowing and communication difficulties. The "Speech Pathology Australia - Special Interest Groups" link has a list of various special interest groups for the Speech Pathology profession (Speech Pathology Australia, 2009). The Neonatal and Infant Therapy Interest Group (NITIG) is an interest group which enables the opportunity for therapists to seek information and feedback from peers and discuss research findings. It also provides useful therapy resources, literature and professional development opportunities. This information can be accessed through the "Neonatal and Infant Therapy Interest Group" link.
  • Accessing the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) website for special interest divisions about paediatric swallowing and communication difficulties. The "ASHA - Special Interest Divisions" link contains a list of 16 different special interest divisions for Speech Pathology (ASHA, 2009).
  • Enquiring about workplace competency packages. Many workplaces have competency packages in place that assist clinicians to develop new clinical skills. When applying for a position working in this field you can contact the Speech Pathology department to enquire about relevant workplace competency packages. If they do not have a competency package in place then this website will help you to prepare for work in this field (Slattery, J, personal communication, October 2, 2009).
  • Applying for mentoring. Information regarding the mentor program can be accessed through the "Speech Pathology Australia - Mentoring" link (Speech Pathology Australia, 2009).
  • Networking with Speech Pathologists working in the field. Professional development seminars provide an opportunity to liaise with Speech Pathologist's interested in swallowing and communication difficulties.

A thorough knowledge of normal development and the head and neck anatomy and physiology of the 0-12 month old infant population is paramount to having the ability to accurately assess and treat paediatric swallowing and communication difficulties. Access the "Anatomy and Physiology" and "Normal Communication" sections of this website for information regarding these topics through the left hand navigation.

Disclaimer: This material is provided to offer new graduates and practising Speech Pathologists with information regarding paediatric feeding, swallowing and communication in the 0-12 month population. This information is to be used as a guide only and is not recommended to be used to dictate clinical practice. La Trobe University will not be liable for any loss or damage suffered by any person arising out of the relevance of any information on this website. La Trobe University accepts no responsibility or liability for the content available at the sites linked from this website. 2009 Created by 4th year Bachelor of Speech Pathology students (Heather Darnley, Tanya Falcone, Louise Hennessy, Kerry Hicks, Brianna O’Connor and Rebekah Oh) in the School of Human Communication Sciences at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia, under the supervision of Justine Slattery.