Helping You Communicate, Connect and Live More Confidently

At Pershing Health System, Speech Therapy is about more than helping someone speak clearly. It’s about improving communication, strengthening thinking and memory skills, addressing swallowing difficulties and helping patients of all ages enjoy a better quality of life.

Whether your child is experiencing speech or language delays, you’re recovering from a stroke, or a loved one is experiencing changes in communication, memory or swallowing, our Speech Therapy team provides personalized care close to home.

Our experienced speech-language pathologists, Diane Sportsman, MA, CCC-SLP, and Jessica Elliott, MS, CCC-SLP, bring more than 50 years of combined experience to Pershing Health System.

Through individualized evaluations and treatment plans, they help patients develop new skills, regain abilities and maintain greater independence in everyday life.

How Speech Therapy Can Help

Speech, Language and Communication

Communication is essential to learning, relationships and everyday activities. Our speech-language pathologists help children and adults who have difficulty speaking clearly, understanding language or expressing their thoughts.

Services may address:

• Speech and language disorders or delays
• Articulation and speech clarity
• Apraxia of speech
• Difficulty understanding or expressing language
• Stuttering and other speech fluency concerns
• Communication challenges following stroke or brain injury
• Social communication difficulties

Memory, Thinking and Cognitive Skills

Speech Therapy also addresses cognitive-communication difficulties that affect everyday activities and independence.

Treatment may focus on:

• Memory and recall
• Attention and concentration
• Problem-solving and reasoning
• Organization and planning
• Following directions and conversations
• Cognitive changes related to stroke, brain injury or neurological conditions

Our goal is to help patients develop practical strategies that support communication, safety and everyday functioning.

Swallowing Difficulties

Difficulty swallowing, also called dysphagia, can affect a person’s ability to eat and drink safely.

Our speech-language pathologists evaluate swallowing difficulties and provide individualized treatment, exercises and recommendations to help improve swallowing function and reduce associated risks.

Signs of swallowing difficulties may include coughing or choking during meals, food feeling stuck, a wet-sounding voice after eating or drinking, or avoiding certain foods because they are difficult to swallow.

Voice Therapy

Changes in voice quality, volume or clarity can affect everyday communication.

Our Speech Therapy team helps patients experiencing concerns such as a weak or soft voice, hoarseness, breathiness or changes associated with neurological conditions.

Treatment focuses on improving vocal function and helping patients communicate more effectively.

Specialized Parkinson’s Voice Therapy

SPEAK OUT!® Therapy Program

Pershing Health System is proud to offer specialized SPEAK OUT!® Therapy for individuals living with Parkinson’s disease and related disorders.

Developed by Parkinson Voice Project®, SPEAK OUT!® is a research-based program designed to help individuals with Parkinson’s improve and maintain speech and swallowing abilities.

The program focuses on improving:

• Vocal volume and clarity
• Speech articulation
• Breath support for speech
• Voice quality and expression
• Intonation and facial expression
• Communication confidence

Diane Sportsman, MA, CCC-SLP, is a Certified SPEAK OUT!® Provider and offers individualized SPEAK OUT!® Therapy at Pershing Health System.

Treatment is tailored to each patient’s needs, abilities and progress.

Speech Therapy for Children

Supporting Communication, Learning and Development

Speech Therapy isn’t just for adults. Our team also works with children experiencing speech, language and developmental challenges.

Services may benefit children with:

• Speech and language delays
• Articulation difficulties
• Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Apraxia of speech
• Down syndrome and other developmental disabilities
• Stuttering
• Social communication challenges
• Early language and literacy difficulties

Early identification and individualized treatment can help children build communication skills that support learning, social interactions and everyday development.

When Should You Consider Speech Therapy?

Changes in communication, thinking, voice or swallowing shouldn’t automatically be dismissed as a normal part of aging.

You may want to speak with your healthcare provider if you or someone you love experiences:

• Increasing difficulty finding words or expressing thoughts
• Speech that has become softer, slurred or difficult to understand
• Difficulty following conversations or understanding instructions
• Memory or problem-solving changes that affect daily activities
• Persistent hoarseness or changes in voice
• Coughing, choking or difficulty swallowing during meals
• Communication difficulties following a stroke or neurological diagnosis

For children, concerns may include delayed speech milestones, difficulty pronouncing words, stuttering or challenges with social communication.

An evaluation can help determine whether Speech Therapy may be beneficial.

Experienced Care, Close to Home

Pershing Health System is expanding access to Speech Therapy services for patients throughout Brookfield and surrounding communities.

Our speech-language pathologists provide services for hospitalized patients, outpatients and individuals receiving care through the PHS Swing Bed Program.

They also work closely with Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, nursing, physicians and other members of the healthcare team to provide coordinated, individualized care.

Meet Our Speech-Language Pathologists

Diane Sportsman, MA, CCC-SLP: Diane brings 29 years of experience in speech-language pathology and has provided services at Pershing Health System for more than 10 years. She is also a Certified SPEAK OUT!® Provider, offering specialized therapy for individuals with Parkinson’s disease and related disorders.

Jessica Elliott, MS, CCC-SLP: Jessica brings 24 years of experience in speech-language pathology, including work in public school systems. She has a special interest in Autism Spectrum Disorders and helping children and families access speech and language services close to home.

Getting Started with Speech Therapy

A referral from a physician or other healthcare provider is required for Speech Therapy services at Pershing Health System.

Once a referral is received, our Speech Therapy department will contact you to schedule services.

Have questions about Speech Therapy?

Call 660-258-1192 to learn more.

Helping patients of all ages communicate, connect and live more independently—right here at home.