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From: Ed Feuer
Date: 04 Oct 2009
Time: 00:51:21 -0500
Remote Name: 142.161.143.195
My question is for Dr. Nathan E. Lavid, whom I note is a clinical and forensic psychiatrist with a special interest in stuttering but NOT an SLP. A long-standing problem in treatment is that while some SLPs know something about stuttering, they lack the necessary tools. Those with the necessary tools know nothing about stuttering. I have advocated that SLPs and others with relevant expertise not only talk to each other but work together in a coordinated multidisciplinary team -- a collaborative team working in ongoing close liaison according to the individual needs of the stuttering client. The therapeutic model I favor is that described by Charles Van Riper in The Treatment of Stuttering, a book with which I assume you are familiar. SLPs lack the knowledge and time to do it themselves -- that's basically why nobody does the full regime of what Van Riper describes. This new paradigm for treatment delivery would have those with relevant expertise outside speech-language pathology accept the Van Riper model and apply their needed expertise in modular fashion as requested by the SLP facilitator. They would be "in" on what the SLP hopes to achieve and would work with the client to help the SLP achieve those goals. So, my question to you: if the funding were there, would what I suggest be viable? I must tell you that I have found many SLPs tend to not very much like my modest proposal. In fact, they see it as simply unthinkable, a zero-sum game, an existential threat that would bring down their monopoly edifice. Hopefully your view will be different although be aware that an affirmative answer would most likely render you unpopular in those quarters -- but not unpopular with people who stutter . . . — Ed Feuer, edfeuer@mts.net