Viva Speech Pathologist

Get to know Viva Speech Pathologist

From Viva Speech Pathologist's website.

• Our approach

  At Viva Speech Pathology, therapy is delivered as a flexible, family-centred process that makes tasks simpler and more enjoyable with graduated supports—moving from simple activities to complex ones, with prompts, modelling, and feedback gradually reduced as the child becomes independent. Sessions are customised to each child's needs and circumstances, with a strong emphasis on parents sitting in to learn strategies they can use at home. The clinicians are trained to engage shy children through play at their physical and developmental level, using favourite toys and activities, and can also use home videos or conduct sessions at home or school if needed. Therapy goals are set in partnership with families, and homework between sessions is carefully explained and monitored to ensure progress continues outside the clinic. The approach values parent input throughout assessment and treatment, embedding therapy into routines and activities families already enjoy.

• Working with families

  Parent involvement is central to the therapy model, and the clinic strongly recommends that parents sit in during sessions so they can learn strategies to support their child at home. Parents are viewed as experts about their children and their input is highly valued during both assessment and therapy within the family-centred approach used. Clear explanations of homework are provided before each session, and progress on homework is checked at the next session to ensure treatment continues without obstacles at home. If parents wish, the clinic can arrange school visits, classroom observations, and meetings with teachers to develop Individual Education Goals in partnership. The clinic also maintains contact through progress notes and offers flexible communication options to support families.

• Meet the team

  The team includes experienced speech pathologists with qualifications in Human Communication Science and Education. The practice owner, Inge Gaudin, is a Senior Speech Pathologist and Member of Speech Pathology Australia, who founded the clinic in 2006. The team has expanded to include multiple senior therapists across two clinics, with at least seven therapists mentioned in recent posts. Therapists provide assessment and therapy in areas including articulation, language, literacy, stuttering, voice, and autism screening, with some holding expertise in specific areas such as working with people with disabilities and diagnostic assessment.

• Your first visit

  At the first appointment, an expert speech pathologist takes note of parent concerns and gathers information through a questionnaire completed beforehand and a parent interview, both of which form part of the assessment. The session includes free play with the parent and/or siblings as well as more structured formal assessment, allowing the clinician to form an overall picture of the child's communicative strengths and areas for improvement. If a child is reluctant to speak in the clinic, supplementary home videos can be used to analyse language samples, or sessions can be arranged at home, daycare, or with a sibling present to ensure the assessment reflects the child's typical communication. The clinician works to understand which activities the child and parents enjoy together, so that therapy tasks can be embedded naturally into these routines.