UC’s Speech and Hearing Clinic aims to expand services and access

Speech-language pathologist Amber Meadows-Yusko was treating patients at the University of Cincinnati Speech and Hearing Clinic last spring when news of the coronavirus pandemic swept across the country, forcing all non-essential establishments to close their doors. For the clinic, this meant a three-week pause in services while its leaders worked to determine which virtual platform would best serve their patients.

When the clinic reopened, Meadows-Yusko, a clinical supervisor at the time, and her colleagues provided free telehealth services to community members throughout the summer. She also recorded 120 teletherapy sessions for UC students to gain clinical knowledge remotely. Now eight months into her new role as director of the clinic, which gradually started shifting back to in-person services last fall, Meadows-Yusko is working to expand programming and make its audiology and speech pathology units more cohesive.

Housed in the Health Sciences Building on UC’s Medical Campus, the clinic serves as a training site for graduate students studying to become speech-language pathologists and audiologists, with 20 to 30 patients typically rotating through each week. The clinic treats all ages and offers a variety of speech, language and hearing services, ranging from basic screenings to highly specialized treatment of complex conditions.   

“We can see anybody in the community,” says Meadows-Yusko, MS, CCC-SLP. “If you see an outpatient speech-language pathologist or audiologist, you have to receive an order or a prescription from your doctor, but to come to us, you can just call and say you’d like an evaluation, and we can get you in.”

The clinic’s only barrier is that it doesn’t accept insurance, but Meadows-Yusko assures that the fees are low and sometimes even cheaper than a typical insurance co-pay. In order to serve more community members, Meadows-Yusko is working with colleagues to expand the clinic’s annual Fluency Friday event with Cincinnati Children’s Medical Center. She’s also spearheading the creation of brand-new offerings, such as a transgender voice modification program that’s unique to the area, as well as a Dysarthria program. 

Equally important are Meadows-Yusko and her team’s efforts to increase the cohesion between the clinic’s audiology and speech pathology units. In addition to initiating more conversation and collaboration between the departments, another focus is patient education. 

“We’re trying to let our clients know that if you’re coming for speech therapy, let’s walk across the hall and get you scheduled for a free audiology evaluation. Not only does that help our audiology students get experience, but the client also gets a free hearing evaluation, which is great,” Meadows-Yusko says. 

Patients who prefer teletherapy services over in-person visits also benefit from Meadows-Yusko’s leadership. As someone who grew up in a small, rural town, she recognizes the importance of increasing access to telehealth services for those who live in remote areas. She also acknowledges that telehealth services may be a patient’s preferred method of treatment for a number of reasons, including convenience, which is why expanding virtual capabilities is a top priority for her. 

Whether the clinic is expanding current offerings or exploring ways to increase access for community members near and far, Meadows-Yusko says the role she plays as director wouldn’t be possible without the support, collaboration and encouragement of her colleagues. “I couldn’t do it without my team,” she says. “They are the driving force of everything, and I wouldn’t be able to do any of this without them.”

Featured image at top:  Photo of the UC Speech & Hearing clinic in the Health Sciences Building shortly after it opened in the fall of 2019.