Nuala South, a speech pathologist in Oklahoma, grew up knowing all about
speech disorders. Her younger brother has cerebral palsy. Although he could
always speak fluently and didn't need speech therapy, some of his friends
did. South always wanted to help them.
"My brother had several friends who couldn't talk out loud, but could understand
everything," she says. "I was always interested in working with them because
I just felt there had to be a better way for them to communicate."
After considering different careers, South thought she could help the most
by becoming a speech-language pathologist. She now helps many children who
have never spoken a word.
"They are usually people who have cerebral palsy or have had a stroke.
They need help learning how to communicate with others."
Progress can often be slow and frustrating. But successful cases spur South
on. "I worked with one young man that everyone thought was severely [cognitively
impaired]," explains South. "But after we began working with
a communication device, he began to communicate and revealed that he had a
lot to say."
People often use speech as an indication of intelligence. If a person can't
articulate a thought, some people conclude that they have none. Being able
to prove these people wrong is one of the best parts of South's job. "It's
very rewarding to find a means for people to communicate."
Nothing compares to the moment when South opens the world to her patient.
Unfortunately, she isn't able to help as many people as she'd like. "It's
sometimes difficult because there isn't enough of me to go around," she says.
"There's a huge demand for speech therapy, especially in the public school
system, but not enough time to see the kids that need it most."
Many of South's patients aren't physically well. "I also work with people
with multiple disabilities, many of whom are medically fragile," she says.
It's South's job to help these people learn to communicate, but a host of
other professionals work with these patients to help their conditions.
Sometimes, doctors are able to ease suffering, but ultimately aren't able
to stop or control a patient's condition. "It's very hard to accept when someone
you have come to know dies unexpectedly," says South.
On a more positive note, South's job has given her an opportunity to work
around the globe. When offered the chance to go overseas to work with children
of military personnel in Germany, she leaped at it. "I lived in Nuremberg,
West Germany, for two years, and I was able to travel all over Europe."
Back home, South hasn't stopped moving. "With my job now I travel all over
the state," she says. She visits schools, hospitals, clinics and helps patients
in the community. "We still do the same thing -- we work to develop strategies
to assist people in communicating more functionally. What I do has a very
definite impact on people and their ability to participate in everyday life."
Tom Khan, an organizer for the Hanen Organization, helps children with
speech disorders. He also has the chance to work all over the world. "We've
got quite an extensive network in over 60 countries."
Hanen is a nonprofit organization with a special approach to speech disorders.
"We provide early language intervention to all young children, especially
infants, toddlers, preschoolers and kindergarten children with speech-language
delays," says Kahn. "It's a hands-on approach that is respectful."
And their approach is respected in many parts of the world. Kahn has coordinated
Hanen organizations for the United States Defense Department, as well as in
Hong Kong, Australia and Israel. "Sweden, Switzerland and Panama are also
interested," he says.
Dr. Grace Middleton, a speech-language pathologist in Texas, is also interested
in teaching others about speech therapy. But instead of traveling the world,
she works at a university.
Middleton began her career in theater; drama is popular with many speech-language
pathologists. "I was very active in speech and drama in high school and thought
about being a drama teacher. But I really wanted to be in a medical field
where I could work with people."
Middleton took an introductory course in speech-language therapy and never
looked back. "I was hooked," she says. "The profession looked so very interesting."
She continued through university, eventually earning her master's degree
in communication disorders. "I was especially attracted by the research aspect
of the profession. The constant explosion of research in an ever-changing
profession provides ongoing opportunities for study."
Middleton also enjoys the challenges of teaching her students. "My best
moments are when my former students are recognized for their accomplishments,"
she says. "When that happens I feel proud and hopeful that I may have had
a small part in their successes."
Helping students gives the same satisfaction that Middleton gets from helping
her own patients. Being able to improve life for others is rewarding.