Speech and Language Therapy (SALT)

Our Adult Speech and Language Therapy teams work in partnership with people and their families/carers to help manage communication and/or swallowing problems. These can be caused by conditions such as stroke, Parkinson’s Disease, Motor Neurone Disease, dementia, Multiple Sclerosis and dysfluency (stammering).

We can provide:

• assessment and diagnosis
• specialist intervention and support
• training for health and social care staff who work with patients who have eating, drinking and swallowing difficulties (dysphagia).

If you, or your loved one, have a communication difficulty and would like to access our service, please contact us direct. For a problem with swallowing, please speak to your GP first. We have four teams based around Dorset, and will arrange sessions to suit you – either in a local clinic or community hospital, or in your own home.

Please note, we do not offer treatment for people with voice disorders – this is provided by speech and language therapy services at Royal Bournemouth Hospital, Poole Hospital and Dorset County Hospital. We are also unable to support people undergoing gender reassignment.

For details of the support available for people with learning disabilities, please visit our learning disabilities website.

Our Paediatric Speech and Language Therapy service works across Dorset in nurseries and pre-schools, children’s centres, schools and health clinics.

If your child is aged under five and you have concerns about the development of their speech, language or communication skills, please speak with your health visitor, GP or local children’s centre, nursery or pre-school. They will make some initial checks, and can refer your child to us for a specialist assessment if required.

For school-age children, we accept requests for our specialist support and advice from schools where support by education professionals has not resulted in the expected progress. Paediatricians and other health professionals may also refer children for assessment and support for problems associated with hearing impairment, cleft palate, velopharyngeal impairment, swallowing difficulties and where a diagnosis of Autism is being considered.

Ideas to support your child’s speech, language and communication can be found at www.ican.org.uk, www.talkingpoint.org.uk, www.afasic.org.uk, www.autism.org.uk, and www.thecommunicationtrust.org.uk

If you need to contact the service directly, please call 01202 443208.

Learn how to thicken drinks in accordance with the International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative (IDDSI) by watching these short tutorials created by the Dorset HealthCare Dysphagia Training Team:

Level 1 (slightly thick)

Level 2 (mildly thick)

Level 3 (moderately thick)

Level 4 (extremely thick)