So you want to work in the NICU.

First of all - cheers to that! You have a major goal to help some of the most fragile (but also resilient) tiny humans we can help, which is exciting and inspirational!

But how the heck do you do it? What does the journey of a non-NICU SLP look like while becoming a NICU SLP?

Khaki Brown, MS CCC-SLP, CNT is here to help!

Khaki is an SLP and NICU infant feeding specialist who dedicates part of her time supporting new SLPs in their journey towards helping medically fragile infants through her business, Khaki Feeds Babies. In this episode of the Swallow Your Pride Podcast, you’ll learn about the challenges and rewards of working in the NICU, the importance of continuing education, and the significance of building relationships within the field.

Brown shares her journey from wanting to be a teacher to becoming an SLP and provides tips for those interested in working in the NICU. This episode leans hard into the importance of self-learning, mentorship, and understanding the developmental needs of infants in the NICU.

Get the show notes at: https://syppodcast.com/308

Timestamps:

Khaki's Journey to the NICU (00:02:27)
Learning in the Externship (00:06:00)
Tips for Getting into the NICU Setting (00:08:00)
The importance of building connections with NICU professionals (00:09:18)
Limited coursework on pediatric feeding in graduate programs (00:10:25)
The multifaceted approach to feeding in the NICU (00:14:38)
The importance of involving the entire team (00:17:58)
Partnering with parents for feeding goals (00:19:12)
Building rapport with nurses in the NICU (00:20:35)
The importance of direct care in the NICU (00:27:32)
Tips for breaking into the NICU (00:28:01)
Closing remarks and call to action (00:28:17)

308 – Becoming a NICU SLP: Tips, Strategies, Suggestions, and More with Khaki Brown

The Swallow Your Pride Podcast was created with the purpose of diving deeper into the issues that speech-language pathologists face when working with patients with swallowing disorders. We’ll discuss many controversial topics in order to provide the LATEST evidence-based treatment strategies, and create a community of dysphagia clinicians who want to consume incredibly valuable insight and information.   Our goal is to allow you to #swallowyourpride, and be open and willing to try the latest in evidence based treatment approaches by learning from experts and researchers in our field in order to create the best outcomes for our patients who need it most.   The Swallow Your Pride Podcast is hosted by Theresa Richard, M.A., CCC-SLP, BCS-S, a Board Certified Specialist in Swallowing and Swallowing Disorders.

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Have you ever considered jumping into the business side of speech pathology?

While business classes aren’t a part of the SLP curriculum, they SHOULD be. As for now, one of the best ways to learn more about the business practices behind speech-language pathology is to hear from those are are actually doing it!

Ebony Green, M.S., CCC-SLP, is here to help!

Ebony is a Bilingual SLP with experience in school, home health, and private clinic settings. Today she shares her journey from education to entrepreneurship and the valuable lessons she learned along the way that will encourage you to explore entrepreneurship and navigate the business aspects of the profession.

Ready to uncover the business side of being an SLP?

Tune in to this week’s discussion and hear what Ebony has to share about it!

Download the show notes here: https://syppodcast.com/326

326 – Jumping into Business: Tips, Strategies, Suggestions, and More with Ebony Green MS, CCC-SLP

Face transplants.

Nope, that’s not just something you see on Grey’s Anatomy. It’s a real procedure and SLPs can support pre-operative evaluations, postoperative rehabilitation, and lifelong happiness for those who undergo this process.

And in this week’s episode of the Swallow Your Pride Podcast, you’ll get to hear from two SLPs who have direct experience with serving this population!

Join Meg Lico and Kaitlin Hanley, both SLPs at NYU Langone Health in New York City, as they share the challenges, triumphs, and profound impact of their collaboration with a surgical team as they navigate the complexities of their roles when serving those who receive a transformative face transplant.

Gain insight into the passion and dedication driving Meg and Kaitlin’s work with craniofacial and facial transplant populations as they advocate for increased awareness and education.

Start challenging the traditional perceptions of speech-language pathology and celebrate the multifaceted expertise of these dedicated professionals. 

Ready to learn how SLPs played a MAJOR role in a groundbreaking face transplant?

Tune in to this week’s discussion and hear what Meg and Kaitlin have to share about it!

Get the show notes for this episode here: https://syppodcast.com/325

Timestamps:
The introduction (00:00:12)
Introducing the speakers (00:01:10)
Preparation for the case (00:02:56)
Post-surgery updates (00:04:49)
Collaboration and patient progress (00:08:21)
Preoperative assessment and strategies (00:09:38)
Inpatient care and progress (00:12:17)
Utilizing research and strategies (00:15:29)
Passive Stretching Therapy (00:18:02)
Collaboration Challenges (00:18:56)
Critical Thinking and Collaboration (00:19:37)
Interdisciplinary Collaboration (00:20:25)
Expertise and Collaboration (00:23:33)
Patient Journey and Preparation (00:25:45)
Specialty Populations (00:31:43)
The lack of awareness about speech pathology (00:35:02)
Challenges in explaining the profession (00:35:44)
The limited understanding of speech pathology (00:36:12)
The profound impact of speech pathology (00:37:33)

325 – Reconstructing Hope with Meg Lico and Kaitlin Hanley

Theresa is BACK this week with the recording of the fourth and FINAL day of the Effective SLP workshop! This is where four brilliant SLPs and Medical SLP Collective mentors came together to discuss all-things productivity and share their tips and tools to help medical SLPs do more ON the clock WITHOUT sacrificing their time OFF the clock.

This week, you’ll hear Laura McWilliam’s discussion from night four of The Effective SLP workshop. She shares a helpful leadership and teamwork method she calls the PARTNER method.

Laura outlines how SLPs can apply the components of the PARTNER method to gain a seat at the productivity table and contribute to leadership discussions about workplace productivity standards.

Laura even provided the outline of the PARTNER method inside the free Productivity Playbook that came with this workshop, which you can access along with the entire workshop at medslpcollective.com/effectiveslp 

Tune into this week’s episode and get motivated to make some changes at work to help you accomplish more WITHOUT sacrificing more.

Get the shownotes for this episode here: https://syppodcast.com/324

Timestamps:

The Partner Method (00:01:14)
Leadership and Teamwork (00:02:00)
Rethinking Workflow (00:04:31)
Comprehensive Care (00:08:27)
Data-Driven Change (00:12:39)
Addressing Staffing Challenges (00:15:21)
Balancing Clinical and Non-Clinical Responsibilities (00:17:33)
The Partner Method (00:18:44)
Understanding Leadership (00:19:59)
Planning and Communication (00:20:54)
Asking for Partnership (00:21:51)
Responding to Changes (00:22:48)
Time Efficiency (00:23:51)
Engaging with Team and Leadership (00:24:47)
Engaging in Data (00:25:51)
Continuous Quality Improvement (00:26:57)
Challenges in Leadership (00:29:02)
Navigating the Healthcare Climate (00:36:04)
Leveraging Patient Safety Programs (00:36:28)
Empowering Clinicians for Quality Improvement (00:37:36)
Productivity and Data Analytics (00:39:23)
Work-Life Balance and Career Growth (00:44:25)

324 – You Can Automate That: Productivity and Efficiency Power Moves for MedSLPs

In February, the MedSLP collective hosted a free four-day workshop to help medical SLPs accomplish more by doing less!

This week, we’re sharing Day 3 of the workshop on the Swallow Your Pride Podcast!

Who decided that burning out was a badge of honor? There’s a stigma across the board — that in order to succeed as an SLP, we have to push beyond our limit DAILY.

Tune in today to catch Day 3 of the Effective SLP Workshop, where Kelly Caldwell, MA, MS, CCC-SLP, dives into real-world examples and applicable tools to help you work smarter, not harder. Dive into different working styles and learn how to cut your assessment documentation time in half with Kelly’s templates and calculators you can apply to your documentation!

Interested in listening to the entire workshop? You can catch the entire workshop HERE: medslpcollective.com/effectiveslp

Kelly's productivity tips (00:00:56)
Questioning the status quo (00:02:04)
Advocacy and productivity (00:05:00)
EMR and documentation systems (00:07:58)
Scheduling and administrative time (00:13:38)
Productivity and documentation (00:16:40)
Documentation and Standardized Tests (00:18:05)
Use of Smart Phrases and Templates (00:19:18)
Simplifying Documentation and Perspective Taking (00:20:57)
Point of Service Documentation (00:22:42)
Balancing Patient Attention and Documentation (00:23:29)
Automating Documentation (00:26:38)
Overcoming Documentation Challenges (00:29:33)
Continuing Education and Documentation (00:32:08)
Productivity Killers and Self-Care (00:35:04)
Dealing with Personal Challenges (00:36:40)
Documentation Timelines and Grace Periods (00:37:51)
Understanding Payer Policies (00:38:53)
Importance of Root Cause Analysis (00:41:18)
Maximizing Workload Efficiency (00:43:00)
Customizing Documentation Templates (00:46:06)
Self-Care and Grace (00:49:15)
Controlling Response to Chaos (00:51:10)
Workshop Conclusion and Resources (00:53:15)

323 – Tips & Tools to Work Smarter, Not Harder

Last month, the MedSLP Collective hosted a free four-day workshop to help medical SLPs accomplish more by doing less!

This week, we’re going to share Day 2 of the workshop on the Swallow Your Pride podcast!

Let’s face it, productivity can be a bit of a maze, with each facility and setting having its own unique calculations and expectations. But fear not, my friends, in today’s episode we’re breaking it all down. 

Tune in so you can hear Kristin Dolan, a seasoned speech pathologist with over two decades of experience under her belt, share her experiences and expertise. With a deep understanding of productivity from both the clinical and managerial perspectives, Kristin offers her wisdom on the inner workings of productivity in our field.

Kristin and Theresa define the differences between productivity & efficiency, share 10 tips to improve your efficiency, and illustrate how you can map out your workdays with the help of a free productivity calculator. 

From deciphering productivity formulas to exploring strategies for efficiency and effectiveness, we’re on a mission to demystify the process and empower you to thrive in your role.

Interested in listening to the entire workshop? You can catch the entire workshop HERE: medslpcollective.com/effectiveslp

Timestamps:

Understanding Productivity (00:00:00)
Accessing Workshop Recordings (00:00:59)
Highlighting Productivity Tips (00:02:15)
Leadership and Teamwork Method (00:03:26)
Discussion on Productivity (00:06:20)
Understanding Productivity and Efficiency (00:09:32)
Empowering Therapists (00:13:51)
Value-Based Systems (00:19:51)
Understanding Productivity Calculation (00:22:46)
Efficiency in Patient Treatment (00:23:30)
Adapting to Patient Needs (00:25:37)
Challenging Productivity Expectations (00:29:21)
Differentiating Managers and Leaders (00:31:43)
Understanding RVUs in Productivity (00:34:22)
Maximizing Efficiency with RVUs (00:38:35)
Tools for Efficient Documentation (00:41:12)
Balancing Efficiency and Quality in Documentation (00:43:35)
The importance of taking time to review repetitive tasks (00:45:35)
Improving department effectiveness (00:46:04)
Utilizing downtime forms for concise documentation (00:47:27)
Reducing decision fatigue and time management (00:49:39)
Delegating tasks and setting priorities (00:50:02)
Analyzing time usage and efficiency (00:54:48)
Understanding productivity calculations and advocating for change (00:55:20)
Managing non-billable but required activities (00:57:31)
Efficiency tools and resources (01:00:07)
MetaSLP Collective membership and support (01:03:14)

308 – Becoming a NICU SLP: Tips, Strategies, Suggestions, and More with Khaki Brown

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