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Speak Out
August 2013
Speech Pathology Australia
2013 National Conference News
23-26 June 2013
Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre, Broadbeach QLD
T
he Conference Planning
Committee was delighted to welcome over
750 attendees to Broadbeach for
SEA
change
:
Synthesize, Evaluate, Act!
SEA
change
: Synthesize, Evaluate, Act!
provided a
platform for delegates to reflect on, and discuss high
quality keynote presentations and workshops, as well as
the many clinical and research papers, workshops and
poster presentations and to provide insights and impetus for
reflection on current clinical practice.
Sunday Workshops
Amy Rodriguez et al kicked off the workshops prior to the
official Conference opening with their workshop – Intensity
and aphasia rehabilitation: Who, what, when and how.
Dr Cori Williams and Chris Lyons then presented their
workshop – You can be a researcher too: Identifying,
analysing, applying and gathering evidence in everyday
clinical practice.
Both of the workshops were clinically relevant, providing
attendees with current research into assessment and
treatment principles in the clinical field of aphasia
rehabilitation and in the formal gathering of evidence within
clinical practice.
Opening Address
Dr Michelle Owens, a medical
practitioner, provided personal
insights in regard to loss of function
and the process of rehabilitation
following severe brain injury – this
personal account of Michelle’s own
journey was highly relevant and
engaging.
Keynote and
Invited Presenters
Dr Rosemary Martino
explored the
perspectives of clinicians, caregivers
and patients in the dimension of
medical consequences for those
with dysphagia, through presenting
the findings of her research. In her
workshop, Rosemary presented a
review of literature on dysphagia screening and compared
the existing practice guidelines in various countries,
presenting evidence supporting reliable and valid tools along
with emerging evidence that screening benefits patient health
and overall recovery.
Professor Sharynne McLeod
,
recipient of the 2013 Elizabeth
Usher Memorial Award, provided a
passionate account of information
gathered from her recent
international collaborations
framed around the World Health
Organisation’s International
Classification of Functioning,
Disability and Health. These collaborations have been
established with the goal of supporting multi-lingual children
to participate in society and have resulted in innovative and
practical strategies to support speech pathologists during
assessment, intervention and collaboration with families,
communities and other professionals.
Dr Tiffany Hogan
presented a
keynote address and workshop
focused on the pathways to reading
comprehension impairment. In her
workshop she was able to expand
on evidence-based approaches
to working with language skills to
improve reading comprehension for
students presenting with reading
difficulties through a ‘simple view of reading’.
Posters
There was an impressive array of 58 posters on display
during the Conference. These were universally well
received and represented a very diverse range of clinical
and research topics. Many poster authors were engaged
in deep discussion during the formal poster sessions.
Congratulations to all authors on the high calibre of the work
presented.
Pre-registration
Many delegates took the
opportunity to register, enjoy
a ‘cocktail’ and catch up with
friends and colleagues while
visiting the exhibitors’ stands.
The exhibition hall for this
year’s Conference was again
filled with a range of novel,
intriguing and high quality
products and services. Thank you to the exhibitors for their
ongoing support of our National Conference – and for the
wonderful prizes donated that were drawn at the Conference
Dinner. Congratulations to the lucky winners. We would also
like to congratulate Safe Swallowing for winning The Best