With a growing multicultural population, the need for bilingual school professionals is increasing. This means that there is a high demand for expert speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, sign language interpreters, and school psychologists and an even higher demand for those that are bilingual. Unfortunately, there are current shortages of speech-language pathologists and some areas do not have access to the professionals they need. The good news is Bilingual Therapies offers school districts the answer with our Teletherapy Services.

Telepractice providers use easy-to-use technology to remotely provide services to their students and help form a strong foundation for long-term success. Telepractice services offer a variety of benefits for students and school districts and here we highlight some key benefits.

Accessibility

Access to a bilingual SLP or other bilingual professionals is not always available to students. This is especially true in remote areas or districts where there may only be a minimal need. The cost of a full-time SLP professional is not always within a school’s operating budget or there may not be professionals available in the area. Teletherapy services solves this problem. Through online remote access, bilingual students can receive the therapy services they need to thrive and succeed.

Flexibility and Savings

When it comes to bilingual SLPs, many school districts that do employ full-time onsite professionals require them to work between many different schools and locations. Professionals lose time when they must drive between locations. Using telepractice services reduces this time lost, adding the flexibility to serve more students from one central location. In addition, cost reductions from printed materials can be anticipated due to telepractice since it relies on digital resources and technology.

Quality Service

Telepractice is a service delivery option that offers quality service that is recognized by ASHA, AOTA, NASP, and NEA. All professionals that provide telepractice services must be appropriately certified and licensed. Many studies over the years have looked at the use of telepractice and the benefits it provides for students. A 2012 review published in the International Journal of Telerehabilitation looked at how the use of telepractice could help mitigate the shortage of speech-language pathologists available to address the needs of students.

What they found was that telepractice offered services to those that would not otherwise receive what they needed. They found that when students receive the needed basic services through telepractice, they benefit from increased access, programming options, and learning. They found that intervention through telepractice  helped increase student learning.

Positive Impact on School Staff

For school districts and SLPs that are overwhelmed with a large or unmanageable caseload, teletherapy can offer a solution. By providing additional teletherapists, onsite caseloads can be reduced creating more balanced workloads for district staff. It also eliminates the delay  in searching for and hiring additional on-site professionals while still allowing you to quickly get services to the students who need it.

Learn How Telepractice Can Help Your School

Taking the step to add teletherapy services to your school district can help current professionals manage a large need, deliver services to bilingual students, and give your students the tools they need to learn and succeed. While Bilingual Therapies has over twenty years of experience in bringing you the best bilingual SLPs, we also work with a variety of disciplines. Our goal is to help bring your students together with the best SLPs and language professionals to reach their goals together. To learn more about how telepractice services can make a difference in your school district, contact Bilingual Therapies at 800-825-7133 or email us at [email protected].