Speak Out OCTOBER 2019 V3 DIGITAL EDITION

Branch News

Victoria

Insight and inspiration shared at student event

VIC 2403 members as at August 2019

The annual Speech Pathology Australia student event was held on July 31 at the University of Melbourne, offering a wealth of knowledge, insight and inspiration to some 140 students from the host institute, Australian Catholic University, and La Trobe University. Titled ‘Speech Language Pathologists To Be 2019 – Communicating with Confidence’, the event echoed the theme of Speech Pathology Week, which promoted communication as a basic human right. Organised by the SPA Victorian branch student representative team with the support of SPA Student Coordinator Camille Paynter, the event was well-received and prompted lively engagement and interest from attendees. A panel of five speech pathologists shared their experiences and expertise in a wide range of practice areas, including acute and sub-acute care, education, paediatric speech and language intervention and youth justice and mental health. Amanda Elston shared some of her professional experiences at her workplace in public health. “Find out what your strengths are and own them; you are most valued when you’re being yourself,” Amanda said. Similarly, Charmaine Tu, discussed her role as a speech pathologist who is passionate about advocating for the profession and its clients. Charmaine stated that the most rewarding experiences in her career were achieving her clients’ goals and observing the impact her work has had on her clients.

Martin Checklin shone a light on how communicating confidently could potentially open doors for greater opportunities by sharing examples of how clear communication resulted in major changes in his career. Offering a different perspective as someone beginning a career in speech pathology, Tim Matheson provided students with advice on searching for and starting first jobs in the field. “Treat every job interview as a learning opportunity and be honest about your skills and experience,” he said. Emina McLean talked about her work in research and highlighted that the speech pathology degree is only the foundation of a career in speech pathology. Students need to practise being assertive and engage in life- long learning in order to develop and refine these skills. On the other side of speech pathology services, students also heard from consumer David Payton, who shared his journey with stuttering and the strategies he has incorporated to improve his quality of life. The student representative group would like to give their sincere thanks to the panel of speakers for giving their time to present at the event, as well as acknowledge the guidance and support received from SPA and student group coordinator Camille Paynter in making the event possible. Wendy Kuo SPA Victorian Branch Student Representative

Would you like to be on the Conference Planning Committee for the National Conference in Victoria in 2020? Turn to page 35 for all of the details.

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October 2019 www.speechpathologyaustralia.org.au

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