Dr Anna Hearne, a speech language therapist based at our Albany clinic, has recently returned from Germany and France where she has been sharing her knowledge with clinicians and therapists from across Europe. Anna was invited to present at a conference conducted by the Interdisziplinaere Vereinigung der Stottertherapeuten in Fulda, Germany (translated as the “Interdisciplinary Association of Stutter Therapists”).
The conference was focused on “’Effectiveness of Therapy for stuttering: what we do, and how we measure this”. Together with colleague Bettina Freerk, the presentation explained their findings and experience with the Lidcombe Program for stuttering treatment in children. Following each presentation there was a chance for healthy discussion of the topic and a question and answer session among the professionals to maximise learnings. As one of only 10 presentations to an exclusive group of 130 invitees, Anna and Bettina not only educated the audience but also helped to grow STARTs networks on a global scale.
A big part of our role as therapists is professional development and education. For us, it’s important to stay at the head of the field with the latest research and treatment approaches to ensure we’re delivering the best service to our clients. As well as the conference in Germany, Anna continued on to present workshops about the Lidcombe Program in Germany and the Camperdown Program in France, helping more therapists to become aware and proficient with these treatment approaches.