The Informed SLP, Leawood, KS (2025)

07/26/2025

Introducing Lauril Sachet! She is a writer for TISLP!⁠

Find some of her work at https://www.theinformedslp.com/review/motivational-interviewing-and-behavioral-change-in-clinical-practice
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[Visual description: Page 1 - Text reads "What’s the biggest bucket list item you’ve marked off? Riding a camel was pretty high up there. Also, completing the La Luz trail run (9 miles, 4,000 ft elevation gain). No way I could do it now but at least I can say I did it once upon a time!" Page 2 - Text reads "What are Lauril’s areas of expertise? Head and neck cancer and voice." Page 3 - Text reads "What advice would you give a new SLP? Learn about reflective listening! This skill will help you navigate imposter's syndrome and collaborate with your patients to find solutions rather than feeling like you have to have all the answers." Page 4 - Text reads "Read a few of Lauril’s reviews at our link in bio." Page 5 - Text reads "Meet the SLPs behind the reviews at TheInformedSLP.com/about-us".]

07/25/2025

What if the research quality you trust and the job transparency you deserve came from the same team?⁠
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We've created two platforms with the same mission: keeping SLPs informed.⁠
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Our research database gives you evidence-based practice insights. Our job board gives you hiring transparency.⁠
✨ SLPs who stay current with research provide better patient care⁠
✨ SLPs who find roles that truly fit them stay longer and thrive⁠
✨ Both deserve the same standard of honesty and transparency⁠
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Two separate platforms, one commitment to informed decision-making.⁠
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Because when SLPs have access to quality research AND honest job information, everyone benefits—patients, employers, and most importantly, you.⁠
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Ready to level up both your practice and your career?⁠ Visit www.informedjobs.com
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[Visual description: Image text reads, "When SLPs have better information, everyone wins. Patients, employers, and SLPs themselves. But here’s the problem... While The Informed SLP has helped you find research evidence you can use for many years now... We’ve been watching you all drown in the job market, with work prospects that are the opposite of informed. We knew we could help you make much better sense of job opportunities. So that’s exactly what we did. The team behind your trusted research platform has now created a job board where transparency isn't optional—it's required. Two resources, one commitment to keeping SLPs informed. Because Informed SLPs don’t just provide better patient care, they have tools to make better career decisions, too. Join us at our link in the caption."]

07/24/2025

Check out this two-part throwback series all about speech therapy for cleft palate at https://www.theinformedslp.com/review/speech-therapy-for-cleft-palate-part-one-assessment-and-referrals

[Visual description: Image text reads, "It’s Cleft Palate and Craniofacial Awareness and Prevention Month. Swipe for more on our 2-part series all about speech therapy for cleft palate. Part one explains... Cleft palate's impact on speech, The velopharyngeal mechanism and dysfunction, Cleft speech characteristics, What your assessment should include. Did we mention this part is FREE?! Don't miss the printables... A visual explanation of velopharyngeal dysfunction, An assessment outline and checklist, Cleft speech characteristics, A consonant inventory form. Part two is all about treatment, Goals, approaches, and strategies, Progress monitoring, Dosage and intensity Make sure to grab the printable air paddle... for screening nasal emission and visual feedback of oral airflow. Read our two-part cleft palate series at our link in caption."]

07/21/2025

We're not asking for much—just the basic info every SLP needs BEFORE clicking "apply."
➖️ Stop posting "DOE" (depends on experience) when you have a budget range. Just tell us what it is.
➖️ Stop saying "part-time" without specifying if that's 10 hours or 30 hours. There's a huge difference.
➖️ Stop listing "various settings" when you know exactly which schools, clinics, or hospitals we'd be working in.
➖️ Stop making us guess if we'll have admin time, a materials budget, or any kind of mentorship support.
➖️ Stop treating salary and caseload details like state secrets that can only be revealed after three rounds of interviews.

The bar is literally on the ground, and somehow most job posts still trip over it.

We're raising that bar so SLPs can make informed decisions about their careers.

SLPs, head to or www.informedjobs.com to explore our jobs database made for just you!

[Visual description: Image text reads, "SLPs are desperately needed. So why do we still feel like we’re begging for scraps when job hunting? The problem isn’t a lack of jobs, it’s a lack of HONEST job posts. Most job board posts tell us nothing about what we actually need to know. Traditional job boards let employers hide behind vague language. "Competitive pay" could mean anything. "Supportive environment" tells us nothing. "Flexible schedule" might mean you work weekends. We're tired of playing guessing games. That's why we built Informed Jobs—where clarity is required. Every employer must complete our comprehensive intake form. No pay range? No post. No caseload info? No post. No productivity requirements listed? You guessed it, no post. We're flipping the power dynamic back to SLPs. Instead of us having to dig for basic information, employers have to be upfront from day one. If they can't be transparent about the job, maybe it's not a job worth having. Some employers won't like our requirements. Good. We'd rather have 100 honest job posts than 1,000 misleading ones. Quality over quantity, transparency over tricks. Ready to skip the job hunt games? Head to our link in bio to search Informed Jobs, a jobs board made specifically for SLPs by SLPs."]

07/17/2025

Change is hard. When we advocate for better practices in our workplace and they don’t stick, it’s usually not because our colleagues don’t care. It’s because the conditions aren’t right—maybe they didn’t have the time, tools, knowledge, confidence, or even a clear idea of what success looks like.

“Doing EBP in real life, Part 3: HOW do we make it happen?” shows how implementation science frameworks can help us identify what’s hard, what’s helping, and what’s possible within our most challenging work situations—so we can stop guessing what went wrong, and start applying the right strategies to create meaningful change. Members can earn 15 minutes of CE credit by reading this review at https://www.theinformedslp.com/review/Doing-EBP-in-real-life-Part-3-HOW-do-we-make-it-happen

[Visual description: Image text reads, "You introduced an awesome, new evidence-based idea and it... totally flopped! What does it take to create real change?"]

07/15/2025

When did you last reflect on how you discuss diet modifications with patients? Are you presenting balanced information or focusing mainly on risk avoidance?

Recent research offers valuable insights into how we approach diet modifications, and reminds us that this work is beautifully complex:

Among 300+ SLPs surveyed,
- 75% had training on dysphagia risks overall (not bad!)
- Less than 50% consistently inform patients of these risks (uh, oh!)
- Only 6% of SLPs correctly identified ALL risks of modified diets (yikes!)

Modifying diet texture isn't just a clinical decision—it's a major life change! Our patients deserve to understand both the risks AND benefits before agreeing to puree everything or thicken their coffee.

Check out our research review ‘Dysphagia Dilemmas: A Spoonful of Informed Consent’ to learn more about the risks and benefits of modified diets (including NPO!) and the informed consent process (including who is responsible and how to obtain it!), plus 15 minutes of ethics CE credit! Find it at https://www.theinformedslp.com/review/Dysphagia-dilemmas-A-spoonful-of-informed-consent

What's your biggest challenge with informed consent in dysphagia management? Share below!

[Visual description: Image text reads, "Modifying diet texture isn’t just a clinical decision...it’s a major life change!" Cartoon of a protest scene where various foods and drinks are rallying against diet texture modifications. Each food item has arms, legs, expressive faces, and is holding a sign with various messages protesting modified diets.]

07/14/2025

Strengths-based assessment isn't just a bonus— it's essential. With the new CANS Checklist, integrating strengths into your autism evaluations is simple and practical. The Child Autism and Neurodevelopment Strengths (CANS) checklist is a quick and easy strengths-based parent questionnaire. The best part? It's available to download for free, from an open access research article by Boulton et al.⁠
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Check out our review of the research, plus a link to the full article at https://www.theinformedslp.com/review/Strength-based-autism-evals-Yes-we-CANS

The research: https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251325287
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[Visual description: Image text reads, "Start your therapeutic relationship off on the right foot. A strengths-based autism assessment tool is just a click away! Check out the free Child Autism and Neurodevelopment Strengths (CANS) checklist! It’s ready to print and give to families. Find it at our link in bio!"]

07/10/2025

We’re talking about NSOMs: non-speech oral motor movements — not to be confused with NSOMEs (exercises!) We do non-speech oral motor assessments on kids all the time as part of a comprehensive evaluation. Do we actually know *when* specific oral motor skills emerge?

Research by van Haaften et al. has new data on developmental norms for NSOM movements like puffing your cheeks or lateralizing your tongue. Members check it out in our new review, "Lick your lips for a peds oral motor assessment."

Members also have access to the NOMAC through a downloadable PDF, which is a comprehensive oral motor assessment tool for children. It has everything you need to use this tool in your clinical practice, as soon as tomorrow! Find it at https://www.theinformedslp.com/review/Lick-your-lips-for-a-peds-oral-motor-assessment

The research: https://doi.org/10.1159/000536485

[Visual description: Image text reads, "NSOM assessment just got an upgrade. We’ve got new age norms for non-speech oral motor movements— PLUS a printable assessment form! Download the PDF version of the NOMAC—complete with ages of mastery, scoring guidelines, and ready-to-use prompts—at our link in bio! Based on van Haaften et al. (2025)."]

07/09/2025

If you’ve ever scrolled through a Facebook thread on white noise for kids, you know the debate is real. Do sound machines help little ones sleep, or do they interfere with auditory and language development?

Our free review, “Sifting Through the (White) Noise,” breaks it all down:
✅What the research really says
✅How to use sound machines safely
✅Plus, earn 12 CE minutes!

Click the link https://www.theinformedslp.com/review/Sifting-through-the-white-noise to check it out.

The research:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2024.04.006
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijporl.2021.110757

[Visual description: Cartoon image of a child standing in a crib with his hand to his ear. There is a white noise machine playing next to him. Image text reads, "White noise: Calming sleep or muffling milestones? Sound machines may... Alleviate crying and enhance sleep for colicky infants, Contribute to reduced heart rates, more effective feeding, and better sleep for NICU babies, Decrease nighttime awakenings in preschoolers. With a few caveats. Sound machines should be used at a low volume, for brief durations, and placed at a distance from sleep areas. Learn more about sound machines and early development. Find our research review, “Sifting through the (white) noise”, at our link in caption."]

07/08/2025

Hey, SLP interventionists! If your answer to that question was “Um, I don’t know” (or even if it wasn’t!), then we have something just for you.

Check out our newest editorial “Do you know what you’re doing? Compensations and building skills” at https://www.theinformedslp.com/review/Do-you-know-what-youre-doing-Compensations-and-building-skills to earn CEUs and learn:
-how to distinguish between these distinct intervention types,
-when you might employ each one (or both!) to address the same therapy goals, and
-why your choice matters when it comes to intentional, ethical, and neuroaffirming care.

And we really want to know:
Which one do you prefer using, and why? Do you think it matters? How do you address the difference with clients/families?

[Visual description: Image text reads, "Is your go-to intervention compensation or is it skill-building? And does it matter?"]

07/02/2025

It might seem unusual for an SLP to consider working with infants with congenital heart disease (CHD), but the risks for dysphagia and communication disorders mean that early and effective SLP intervention can be critical.

Check out “To the heart of the matter: What SLPs need to know about feeding and communication in congenital heart disease” at https://www.theinformedslp.com/review/To-the-heart-of-the-matter-What-SLPs-need-to-know-about-feeding-and-communication-in-congenital-heart-disease to earn 12 minutes of CEU and learn why it’s so important that we SLPs know when (and how) to step in and do something about it.

[Visual description: Image text reads, "Yes, SLPs can support children with congenital heart disease.Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common birth defect. And it impacts way more than just the heart. Kids with CHD may encounter: Genetic syndromes, Multiple hospitalizations with periods of enteral feedings and separations from caregivers, Recurring surgeries with associated neurologic risks, and Medical complications across every major body system. Feeding/swallowing and communication may be at risk, so we offer: Multidisciplinary assessment, Early intervention, Family and caregiver education and support. Read our review for more on CHD and the SLP: Types of CHD, Details on CHD’s impact by system and domain, Research on CHD prognosis across the scope of SLP, Specifics on how SLPs play a role in CHD care."]

07/01/2025

New month! New Evidence! Our research reviews now drop at the start of each month.

This month's lineup is PACKED with evidence you can use. Read the new reviews at https://www.theinformedslp.com/reviews

What are you most excited to dive into?

[Visual Description: Image text reads, "July's research reviews are here! In case you missed it, we now publish new reviews at the start of each month! Swipe for this month's highlights. For Adult Med SLPs... An absolutely huge release on dysarthria treatment, the long-anticipated follow-up to our previous assessment deep dive, a must-read on the ethics of informed consent for modified diets, treatment approaches for PPA and TBI. For Pediatric SLPs... White noise and babies research, Pediatric tremors
A "new" class of intervention approaches for autistic kids, Transitioning to adulthood with a stutter (This last is really special; both the writer and the audio narrator happen to be SLPs who stutter themselves.) For School SLPs... If you're feeling it, you can dip a toe into back-to-school vibes with a whole slate of new reviews on partnering with teachers, parents, and the curriculum to serve your school-based caseload. To our members... Thank you all for being here and for your emails, DMs, comments, questions, and ideas. Let us know how we're doing and how we can keep evolving to meet your needs. We're so grateful for the community of all of you Informed SLPs!]

The Informed SLP

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