An interprofessional early childhood training program: speech-language pathology and music therapy student outcomes and reflections

ABSTRACT

Speech-Language Pathologists (SLP) and Music Therapists (MT) frequently work together in a wide variety of healthcare settings. This collaboration has tremendous potential for providing effective client-focused care and is in line with best practices for both professions. There are tensions that may arise within these collaborations, however, as each profession attends to their own scope of practice and works to understand the boundaries between each treatment modality. One way to address these essential professional relationships and potential tensions is to embed opportunities for SLP and MT students to co-treat within their educational training programs. This report outlines a preliminary evaluation of SLP and MT student readiness for interprofessional practice and their unique experiences as co-therapists within a fully collaborative clinical setting for young children with speech and language disorders. Through a mixed method program evaluation that included the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale and focus group interviews, SLP and MT students explored their experiences with IP service provision, and their experiences as students in this type of learning environment.

KEYWORDS:

• Interprofessional education
• interprofessional practice
• speech-language pathology
• music therapy
• collaboration

Declaration of Interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Corey Cassidy

Corey Cassidy, PhD, CCC-SLP is a Professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Associate Dean of the College of Health and Human Services, and Director of the Center for Interprofessional Education and Practice at Radford University.  Dr. Cassidy teaches courses and conducts research in the areas of early language development and disorders, efficacy of caregiver and childcare provider training, and interprofessional education and collaborative practice across  healthcare and human service professions. Dr. Cassidy is a licensed speech-language pathologist with more than 20 years of experience providing family-centered services in the early intervention and early childhood arenas.

Patricia Winter

Patricia Winter, PhD, MT-BC is an Associate Professor of Music Therapy at Radford University in the Music Therapy Program. Dr. Winter’s music therapy experiences include clinical work across the developmental continuum with older adults and children with speech and language disorders and she has actively presented regionally, nationally, and internationally about the benefits of music therapy for diverse populations.

Skyler Cumbia

Skyler Cumbia is an undergraduate student in the Music Therapy program at Radford University. She participated in the Preschool Language Lab in the Summer of 2018.