I was working a full-time position as the only SLP in a small district serving the preschool population. I had to assess, determine eligibility, and service the young ones who qualified in that district. As I entered May of that year, I was insanely excited to have summer so close, but I was also sick to my stomach each time someone mentioned what needed to be done at the beginning of the next school year. This wasn’t because I didn’t love those kids- it was because by lunchtime each day, I had hit my limit and felt too exhausted to be as fun and intentional as I was for the 8:30 am crew by the time the 2 pm students came rolling (bright-eyed and bushy-tailed). That was a red flag and a huge sign that I needed to change. I had always been curious about teletherapy, but it never made sense to make the switch due to the low pay I saw across the board. However, I found a situation I could handle and decided to reduce my preschool position to part-time and take on teletherapy the other days of the week (to see if it was truly what I wanted).
Gosh, once I started, I could never look back. My literal physical exhaustion drastically declined, and I developed a newfound sense of joy as a speech therapist. The timing was wild as months into doing teletherapy, I found out I was pregnant. THANK GOODNESS I could put my feet up on a couch and work from home during those months!
As my maternity leave approached, I was virtually introduced to the SLP, who would take my students during my break. This SLP (who I only got to communicate with via text and a few times over the phone) was amazing- I truly appreciated her patience as I took a while to respond to questions with a newborn at home. We lost touch for some time, and just this past year, we reconnected. It turned out that this SLP (Ashley Paxton M.S., CCC-SLP) started her very own private teletherapy practice called Speak Life Pediatric Speech Therapy. I was honored to be asked to do her the favor of taking on her caseload while she went on maternity leave for her second child. Wow, she really had an amazing group of kids, and their wonderful families were just icing on the cake.
After experiencing her subbing for me and working under her, I was blown away by her work ethic and ability to go from a therapist working for one of the biggest teletherapy groups at the time to taking a leap and starting her own business. I knew she would be the perfect SLP to reach out to and ask, “Why did you make the switch to teletherapy?”. Here are her responses:
1. What were you doing prior to teletherapy?
Prior to teletherapy, I was working in the schools and I loved it! For a few years, I was commuting about 100 miles per day, round trip, to a tiny school district in the middle of the Mojave desert. I primarily served two classrooms with severe to profound needs. It stretched me as a therapist to learn more about augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), navigate challenging behaviors, all while working alongside a population with English as a second language. It was in this position that I was first exposed to teletherapy! Since the district was so rural, they had difficulty acquiring enough speech-language pathologists to staff the schools. Teletherapy was relied on to meet the needs of the students. I was intrigued to see this service delivery model “in the wild,” so to speak, when I had only ever learned about it briefly in graduate school.
2. What was the catalyst that caused you to take teletherapy more seriously as a job option?
A few changes in our family life became the catalyst to seriously consider teletherapy. For a brief period of time we became foster parents and I needed the flexibility to be home more. Part of me was also ready for a break from such a long commute! So during the 2019/2020 school year, I decided to make the change and work part-time for a large teletherapy company. I always like to say that I started teletherapy before the rest of the world had to, right before the pandemic.
3. Did you encounter any hiccups during the switch to telepractice?
Some hiccups were technology-based. It took a little time to feel proficient using Zoom (screen sharing, etc.) Also, bad internet connection, power outages, and technological difficulties can cause headaches. Mostly, the hiccups involved ethical dilemmas and questions that arose, like when a client was vacationing in another state I wasn’t licensed in. Or what do I do if a child elopes from the laptop they’re logged in on? Or how do I conduct a session when the student refuses to unmute themselves or turn their video on? How do I kindly ask parents not to log their child on for speech therapy from a moving car (hello, motion sickness)? As a teletherapist, I realized how little control I have over the therapeutic environment. These all became learning opportunities for me to set up boundaries from the beginning.
4. What have been the biggest pros to being a virtual SLP?
The biggest pros for me have been an immediate increase in quality of life, no commute, and more freedom. It has challenged me to make my sessions fun and engaging- to still try incorporating creativity (I used to love doing crafts!) and reading books together (yay for YouTube read-alouds!) On a personal note, I love that in between sessions, I can start a load of laundry, walk my dog, spend time with my children, or even take a nap! I also love that I can live out my passion for serving clients and their families who live in rural areas. My time in that tiny school district in the middle of the desert sparked a passion for accessibility. Teletherapy is convenient for both the clinician and busy families. Teletherapy limits barriers that prevent families from receiving speech therapy services (rural areas, packed schedules, long waitlists). I have also been encouraged to see that teletherapy is truly just as effective as in-person sessions for most clients!
5. Do you have any tips/suggestions for other therapists considering making this change?
Joining facebook groups that focus on teletherapy, taking a few CEU courses on the subject, and seeking out a mentor/friend to support you in the change! I also recently discovered the podcasts “Talking Teletherapy” and “Telepractice Today.” Both of these have great seasoned teletherapists on as guests, who talk about a very wide range of tips, advice, current issues, etc.!
If you or someone you know needs private virtual services in the states of CA, ID, or TX, I highly recommend reaching out to this experienced and immensely talented speech-language pathologist. You can find her at: https://www.speaklifepediatric.com/
