acslpa newsletter - Alberta College of Speech

Transcription

ACSLPA NEWSLETTER
Summer 2012
www.acslpa.ab.ca
Volume 37, No. 2
From the President...
Inside this Issue...
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From the President
Registrar/CEO’s Report
Council Meeting Highlights
ACSLPA Celebrates 10 Years as a Regulatory Body!
Important Information Regarding 2013 Registration
Renewal!
Continuing Competence Program (CCP) – Changes
to Submission Procedure and Deadline
Police Information Checks/Vulnerable Sector Checks
Moving? Changing Your Job? Keep Your College
Informed!
ACSLPA Summer Hours
Help Shape the Future of Your Profession –
Opportunities on Council
Survey Results Regarding ACSLPA Member
Participation on Council
New Guidelines for Management for Sudden
Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Brain Imaging Research in Alberta
Clinical Conundrum
CAASPR Receives $944,619 in Funding to Develop
Competency-Based Assessment Framework
Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine Dean Reappointed
for a Second Term
Ordinary Magic – A HUGE Success!
Early Child Development Mapping Project (ECMap) –
First Results Available
New Releases from the Health Council of Canada
What’s On Your Nightstand…DVD Player…Computer?
Hear and There: Humour at Work
Apps Update
News from the University of Alberta
New Long-Term Care Initiative
CAASPR Responds to APA Request for Feedback on
the Proposed DMS-5
Update from CASLPA
Private Chat – ASAPP
ACSLPA Celebrates 10 Years!
ACSLPA
#209, 3132 Parsons Road • Edmonton, AB T6N 1L6
Ph: 780-944-1609 • 1-800-537-0589
Fax: 780-408-3925
headoffice@acslpa.ab.ca • www.acslpa.ab.ca
Anne Assaly, Registrar/CEO
Susan Rafaat, Director of Professional Practice
Holly Gusnowsky, Director of Professional Practice
Susan Kraft, Registration Coordinator
Jo Daugherty, Executive Assistant
Leanne Kisilevich, Administrative Assistant
W
ow! I cannot believe we are into
Summer 2012! Where has the
time gone? Once again I have an
infinite list of things I need to do and want to
do, professionally and personally...where
does it all end? Finding a work/life balance is
tough! Maintaining it is an entirely different
task...which leads me to sharing what I have
been busy with on behalf of ACSLPA. I recently returned from
national regulator and association meetings held in St. John’s,
Newfoundland during the annual CASLPA conference. These
regulator [Canadian Alliance of Audiology and SpeechLanguage Pathology Regulators (CAASPR)] and association
[Pan-Canadian Alliance and Canadian Interorganizational
Steering Group for Audiology and Speech-Language
Pathology (CISG)] meetings are full of amazing staff and
volunteers from all provinces and territories who share and
collaborate with each other regarding what is happening in
their communities with public awareness of our professions
and the regulation of members.
Sitting in on previous ACSLPA Council meetings over the past
three years, it has been mentioned several times how our
College was asked to share its completed works with other
provinces, but attending the meetings held during CASLPA
this year solidified how much our College has moved into the
trailblazing position for speech-language pathology and
audiology. Our College is amazing; it is extraordinary
because of the people who work and volunteer on different
committees. In the past few years, ACSLPA has proactively
implemented a continuing competency program, supportive
personnel guidelines, documentation guidelines, and specialty
assessment guidelines (i.e., APD and Autism* – in progress*).
ACSLPA is currently exploring advanced practice
competencies and advocating Universal Newborn Hearing
Screening. These are just a few of the projects to date. We
need to pat ourselves on the back and give the individuals
involved with all these tremendous projects a huge “Thank
You”. I believe there is no better praise than to be asked by
your professional peers to use something you have created.
Hence, as we move into summer and the seasonal plethora of
activities that warm weather brings, let us continue our efforts
in maintaining our province as the place to be if you are an
audiologist or speech-language pathologist, but also let us
each find time to spend with friends and families and perhaps
enjoy some of the great outdoors we are blessed to have here
in Alberta.
Mandy Watson, R.Aud
ACSLPA President
Summer 2012 ACSLPA Newsletter
Registrar/CEO’s Report
J
uly 1, 2012 marks ACSLPA’s 10th anniversary as a
regulatory body! ACSLPA is very grateful to the staff
and many volunteers who have worked so hard to
bring the College to where it is today. To celebrate the
occasion, ACSLPA held an Open House at the ACSLPA
office, attended by members and external stakeholders
on June 8, 2012. Further celebrations will also take place
at the 2012 ACSLPA Conference being held in Calgary
on October 18 and 19. We look forward to seeing those
who were unable to attend the Open House in Edmonton.
The Alberta Government requires all regulatory bodies to
prepare an annual report to communicate the activities of
the College to the Minister of Health and Wellness, the
Legislative Assembly of Alberta and the Alberta public.
The report contains College statistics, an overview of the
activities and initiatives completed, as well as the audited
financial statements for the year. The 2011 Annual
Report is available for viewing on the ACSLPA website.
Although speech-language pathologists and audiologists
in Alberta have now been regulated professions for 10
years, ACSLPA still frequently hears from members who
are unclear on the difference between a regulatory body
and a member services association. For clarification on
the differences, please be sure to see the article on
page 4.
Members of ACSLPA have the privilege of being selfregulated professionals. This means that the professions
govern and manage themselves, with the mandate of
protecting the public. Under the Health Professions Act,
the business and affairs are governed by a Council.
ACSLPA has been fortunate to have had many
exceptional members serve on Council over the years.
Their expertise, commitment and dedication has been
critical in setting the directions of ACSLPA. Recognizing
the importance of a continued strong Council to govern
the professions, ACSLPA conducted a survey to acquire
member feedback regarding participation on Council.
Information obtained in the survey will be carefully
considered as the Nominations Committee works on
recruiting Council members in the future. For a summary
of results from the survey, please see page 9.
As ACSLPA works toward streamlining the registration
renewal process for members, there are some important
changes that will be coming this fall. Specifically, the
registration renewal deadline will be changed to
December 1, which is one month prior to the end of the
registration year. In addition, members will be required to
submit their Continuing Competence Program information
as part of the registration renewal process. Further
details of these changes are available on page 6.
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During
May,
ACSLPA
provided
members with a number of website links
to resources that could be used during
May Month promotions. During May,
ACSLPA also ran advertisements in
select community publications across the province,
promoting speech-language pathologists and audiologists
as the professionals of choice for speech, language and
hearing concerns. Total circulation through more than
110 newspapers was over 800,000. ACSLPA was
delighted to receive a telephone call from a member of
the public who indicated that she had been suffering from
“ringing in her ears” and was not sure what to do. After
seeing our advertisement, she found an audiologist to
help her.
Plans for the 2012 ACSLPA Conference being held in
Calgary, Alberta on October 18–19 have been finalized.
This year’s theme is “Connect, Communicate, Calgary
2012”, with a special focus on the use of technology in
practice.
Further information is available in this
newsletter. Mark your calendars and plan to attend!
The ACSLPA Directors of Professional Practice (Susan
Rafaat, R.SLP and Holly Gusnowsky, R.Aud) continue to
work with various member committees on important
College initiatives related to advanced practice,
advocating for the role of SLPs in capacity assessment,
seeking the ability for audiologists to refer directly to
ENTs, as well as working to support the institution of
universal newborn hearing screening (UNHS), or Early
Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) in Alberta.
On the national front, the Canadian Alliance of Audiology
and Speech-Language Pathology Regulators (CAASPR)
held their spring meetings in conjunction with the
CASLPA Conference in St. John’s, Newfoundland.
ACSLPA representatives at the meetings included
President Mandy Watson, R.Aud, President Elect Laura
Manz, R.SLP, and myself, as CAASPR Chair. A great
deal of the work of CAASPR is focusing on the
development of competency assessment tools for
speech-language pathologists and audiologists.
CAASPR is pleased to have received $996,619 in funding
for this project through Human Resources and Skills
Development Canada. Further information is available on
page 14.
If you have any issues that you would like to discuss,
please feel free to contact me at the ACSLPA office. I
wish each of you a wonderful summer!
Anne Assaly
Registrar/CEO
Council Meeting Highlights
T
he highlights from the Council meeting, held on
April 28, 2012 are as follows:
 2011 ACSLPA audited financial statements were
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approved.
The financial reports for the first quarter, to March 31,
2012, were approved.
Council approved the draft 2011 ACSLPA Annual
Report for publication.
An update was provided on the Strategic Plan 2012–
2014.
Council approved moving the CCP submission
deadline to coincide with registration renewal.
Council approved proceeding in principle with the
implementation of a pension plan for ACSLPA
employees.
Approval was provided to proceed with researching
opportunities for ACSLPA to sponsor an award in
school science fairs, as a means of raising
awareness of the areas of speech, language and
hearing in Alberta.
Council approved provision of access to webcams for
Council members and staff, if needed, to facilitate
participation in meetings when in-person meeting is
not a possibility.
Council approved allocation of funds toward ACSLPA
10th anniversary activities.
The highlights from the Council Meeting, held on June 9,
2012 are as follows:
 An update was provided on the Strategic Plan 2012–
2014.
 Council made the decision to postpone implementation
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of an employee pension plan, with a plan to review the
financial feasibility in one year’s time.
Council adopted a decision-making checklist, to serve as
a working tool for ACSLPA Council, committees and
staff to facilitate effective decision-making.
Council reviewed the results of the ACSLPA member
survey regarding participation on Council; the
Nominations Committee was assigned the task of
developing a work plan to address issues identified by
members.
The issue of providing honoraria for Council members
was discussed; Council concluded that they would
postpone making a decision on the matter for one year’s
time.
Council approved proceeding with the initial phase of
establishing a marketing plan and key foundational
materials for a public awareness campaign.
Information regarding opportunities for ACSLPA to
sponsor an award in school science fairs was reviewed.
Council determined that any decision surrounding
sponsorship of science fair awards would become part of
a larger promotional awareness campaign.
2012 ACSLPA COUNCIL MEETINGS
The following meeting dates have been set by Council for the remainder of
2012. Meetings are usually held at the ACSLPA office in Edmonton.
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September 22
Annual General Meeting – October 19 (Calgary)
ACSLPA members are invited to attend any or all meetings as observers, but must pre-register
with the ACSLPA office. The AGM is open to all members. Members on the General Register,
Inactive members and Honourary members have voting privileges at the AGM. Contact the
ACSLPA office to confirm scheduled times and meeting locations.
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ACSLPA Celebrates 10 Years
as a Regulatory Body!
Regulatory Body and Association – What is
the Difference?
Speech-language pathologists and audiologists have
been regulated under the Health Professions Act (HPA)
in Alberta for 10 years, yet questions still arise regarding
the difference between a regulatory body and an
association, and why ACSLPA may or may not take on
certain roles or activities. Some of the confusion likely
arises from the fact that many regulatory bodies,
including ACSLPA, evolved from a membership group or
association. Such groups typically advocated on behalf
of their members and provided education/professional
development opportunities, with the primary mandate of
representing the interests of their members.
The
mandate of a regulatory body is different; the primary
mandate is protecting and serving the public.
In Canada, regulation of health professions occurs at the
provincial level, with each province having their own
legislation. In Alberta, 32 professions, including speechlanguage pathologists and audiologists, are regulated
under the HPA. ACSLPA is the body that has been
delegated the authority to regulate the practice of speechlanguage pathologists and audiologists for the province.
Under the HPA, a professional must be registered with
their regulatory body in order to practice.
Association membership, on the other hand, may occur at
the provincial or national level, with membership being
optional. Examples of provincial associations in Alberta
relevant to speech-language pathologists and
audiologists include the Alberta Association of
Audiologists and the Alberta Speech and Language
Association of Private Practitioners. Examples of national
associations include the Canadian Academy of Audiology
(CAA), the Canadian Association of Speech-Language
Pathologists and Audiologists (CASLPA) and the
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
(ASHA).
In addition to their regulatory responsibilities, some
regulatory bodies may also be mandated with performing
some association functions. Such is the case with a
number of regulatory bodies in Alberta; examples include
Physiotherapy Alberta – College + Association, the
College and Association of the Registered Nurses of
Alberta, the Alberta Dental Association + College and
ACSLPA.
It is important to note that in these
organizations, the regulatory roles are first and
foremost. The association type activities may be carried
out in varying degrees, depending upon the activities of
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other existing profession related associations. Overall, it
would not make economic sense for an organization like
ACSLPA, for example, to duplicate work that is being
done by a strong national association such as CAA,
CASLPA or ASHA (nor would we have the resources to
do so!)
While the colleges listed above provide examples of
organizations that perform both regulatory and some
association functions, there are also Alberta regulatory
bodies that perform regulatory functions alone, with a
separate organization to carry out association activities.
An example is the Alberta College of Occupational
Therapists, which serves as the regulatory body and the
Society of Alberta Occupational Therapists, which serves
as the member association.
While Alberta does allow both regulatory and association
roles to be performed within one organization, other
provinces do not allow this; such is the case in British
Columbia and Ontario, where legislation requires a
definite separation between college and association.
The following table provides a brief summary of some of
the key differences between a regulatory body and a
stand-alone professional member association.
While there are distinct differences between regulatory
bodies and associations, organizations may still
collaborate and consult with each other on matters of
common interest.
For example, regulatory bodies,
associations and university programs from across
Canada are currently working in collaboration on the
development of competency profiles for speech-language
pathologists and audiologists.
Members who have any questions regarding the
difference between regulatory bodies and associations, or
regarding the specific activities of ACSLPA are
encouraged to contact the office.
Key Roles
Mandate
Regulatory Body (College)
Serve and protect the public
Serve the needs of members
Regulates the practice of a profession as set out in provincial
legislation (i.e., Health Professions Act, Speech-Language
Pathologists and Audiologists Profession Regulation and other
relevant legislation), thereby protecting the public.
 Advocates for and promotes professions
 Provides continuing education opportunities and
Regulatory responsibilities as required by legislation are
as follows:
Responsibilities may include the following:
 Establish requirements for registration
 Approve programs of study and education courses for
the purposes of registration requirements
 Ensure that only those who have the required
Key Responsibilities
Association
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education and skills are registered to practice and use
the protected titles of their profession
Enforce mandatory registration requirements as stated
in legislation
Establish, maintain and enforce standards of practice
and a Code of Ethics for the professions
Establish, maintain and enforce standards for
continuing competence, thereby ensuring registrants
meet requirements for ongoing education in order to
maintain competence in their practice
Respond to complaints regarding the practice of registrants
other benefits for members
 Provide member services as determined by the
needs of members
 Provide continuing education opportunities and
practice resources for members
 Provide information and resources to members,
other health professionals and the public
 Advocate and lobby governments on issues that
support the best interests of the public
ACSLPA also establishes collaborative partnerships/
relationships with external stakeholders including other
regulatory bodies, post-secondary education institutions and
government.
In addition to the regulatory responsibilities listed above,
ACSLPA also carries out the following:
Other Activities
 Represent the interests of the profession to
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Benefits for Registrants
or Members
Governance
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government bodies and other professional groups
Development of professional practice guidelines and
other resources to assist members in their practice
Development of communications for members and
education of the public (i.e., newsletter, E-News,
ACSLPA website)
Annual
conference
and
other
professional
development opportunities
Member recognition and annual awards
Guidance to members on professional practice issues
Coordination of special projects/advocacy activities
that benefit the professions and/or the public
In addition to the responsibilities listed above, an
association may also carry out the following:
 Provide certification or other recognition programs
for members
 Establish continuing education requirements for
members
 Respond to complaints
 Be involved in setting professional fees on behalf
of members
Governed by a Council. (ACSLPA Council consists of elected
registrants from throughout Alberta, as well as at least
25% public members, as required by legislation, appointed
by the Lieutenant Governor in Council in the Alberta legislature. Public members provide valuable input that assists
Council in ensuring that the best interests of the public are
served in governance decisions.)
Generally governed by an elected Board
 Professions are recognized in legislation, thereby
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raising their profile
 Protection of professional titles and designations
 Authorization to engage in restricted activities
 Labour mobility in other regulated provinces
Promotion of professions
Continuing education opportunities
Professional practice resources
Advocacy and lobbying efforts
Possible
recognition
through
certification
programs
 Reciprocal membership agreements with other
associations
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Important Information Regarding 2013 Registration Renewal!
A
CSLPA Council has approved a change in the
registration renewal deadline. The new deadline
will be December 1 of each year.
(The
registration year will remain January 1 – December 31.)
The rationale for the deadline being one month prior to
the next registration year is as follows:
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The earlier registration renewal deadline will allow
ACSLPA to ensure that all members who wish to
renew their registration are in possession of their
practice permit by January 1 of each new
registration year.
In addition, the change will allow sufficient time for
follow-up with those members who fail to renew
their registration by the established deadline.
Setting the due date for registration renewals to one
month prior to the new registration year has also been
implemented by a number of other colleges.
Registration renewal deadlines for 2013 will be as
follows:
 Early bird deadline – Renewed online before
11:59 PM MST November 1, 2012
 Regular deadline – Renewed online by 11:59 PM
MST December 1, 2012
Please also note that for 2013 Registration Renewal,
Continuing Competence Program (CCP) submissions
will be submitted online as part of the registration
renewal process. Please see the article below for further
details.
Continuing Competence Program (CCP) – Changes to Submission
Procedure and Deadline
A
CSLPA members should be aware of the
following important changes to the CCP:
1. Change in Deadline for Submission – CCP
submissions will be due with registration renewal
ACSLPA Council has approved changing the
Continuing Competence Program (CCP) submission
deadline to coincide with the registration renewal
deadlines.
Key considerations in making this
decision were as follows:
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Reduce confusion regarding which year a
CCP is representing.
The feedback from many members
indicated that the previous July 1 deadline
posed great difficulty, as June is one of the
busiest months for many members. The
new deadline will be well after the back to
school rush and well before the Christmas
rush.
Linking registration renewal with CCP
submissions is in accordance with the
Health Professions Act, and the practice of
most other regulatory colleges in Alberta.
Allow additional time to incorporate
evidence-based improvements to the
current CCP.
2. CCP Submissions Will Be Made Online
ACSLPA is in the process of implementing an online
format for the CCP. As with the online registration
system, beginning with the 2013 submissions,
members will be able to easily access their CCP
information at any time to make updates. The final
CCP submission for each year will be submitted as
part of the registration renewal process.
For the time being:
 Please use the paper-based CCP forms on the
ACSLPA website to track updates to your
program until you are able to transfer the
information to the online format.
 Submit your 2012 CCP ONLINE (with goal for
2013) with your online registration renewal this
fall, between October 1 – December 1.
Watch for further information in the months to come. If
you have any questions, please feel free to contact the
ACSLPA office.
Police Information Checks/Vulnerable Sector Checks
A
s per ACSLPA policy, all ACSLPA registrants
must provide a satisfactory Police Information
Check including a Vulnerable Sector Check (PIC/
VSC) or equivalent prior to obtaining registration and a
practice permit, and every five years thereafter. Those
members who were initially registered in 2003 or 2008
will be required to provide a PIC/VSC for their 2012
registration renewal.
Those registered members who are required to submit
their PIC/VSC this year will receive an email from
ACSLPA four months in advance of the registration
renewal due date. Registered members who fail to
submit their PIC/VSC by the due date will not have their
registration renewed and therefore be ineligible to work or
volunteer as a speech-language pathologist or audiologist
in Alberta.
For further information on the PIC/VSC, please refer to
the Registration Standards and Guidelines document
available on our website at:
http://www.acslpa.ab.ca/public/data/documents/
Registration_Standards_&_Guidelines.pdf
Important Note: Please allow sufficient time for
your local police service to process your PIC/VSC;
significant delays of 6 to 8 weeks have been
experienced in some of the larger cities.
Moving? Changing Your Job? Keep Your College Informed!
N
ow it’s easier than ever to inform ACSLPA about
any changes to your contact, employer and
professional liability insurance information. Follow
these simple instructions:
1. Access your online account using the
Member Login button on the ACSLPA
website.
2. Enter your User ID (your ACSLPA
registration number) and your password
(which will be the same one you used for
renewal or received in an email if you are a
new member).
3. Select “View/Update Profile”.
4. Enter your changes and save.
Please note that name changes cannot be completed
online; you will need to forward a copy of legal
documentation providing proof of the change to the
ACSLPA office to complete the process. This may
include a marriage certificate, driver’s license, passport or
other legal documentation.
Please feel free to contact the ACSLPA office if you have
any questions.
ACSLPA Summer Hours
Please be aware that, during July and August, there
may not always be staff in the office when you call or
drop by due to staff holidays. Please feel free to
telephone or leave an email message and we will
make every attempt to get back to you within a
24-hour period (one business day). If you wish to
leave documents, simply slide them under the door.
Please check the ACSLPA website if you have questions about registration (e.g.,
for changing status, see “General Register and Registration – For ACSLPA
Members – Changing Your Status…”; for Continuing Competence Program info,
see “Continuing Competence” area) or for professional questions, see
“Resources”.
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Help Shape the Future of Your Profession – Opportunities on Council
D
o you want to shape the future of your
profession?
Consider joining ACSLPA Council for an amazing
opportunity to share your perspective and experience
with colleagues and network with others in the
professions!
Did you know that as a member on ACSLPA
Council...
 The President Elect will also attend the Pan-
 You will be directly involved in the important
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decisions that shape your profession;
You will learn invaluable information regarding
your College and its interactions with other
organizations;
You will gain skills in the areas of governance of
self‑regulated professions, strategic planning/
monitoring, development/evaluation of policies and
programs,
financial
planning/monitoring,
leadership, collaboration and teamwork;
You can attend the ACSLPA Conference at no
cost;
Your employer will receive a letter from the CEO/
Registrar acknowledging your contributions to your
professional College; and
You can receive credit towards your CASLPA
continuing education hours.
 Attendance at four meetings per year, typically on
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If you are interested in this unique opportunity, have your
peers sign off a nomination form on your behalf.
Opportunities for 2013
Effective January 2013, the following positions on
ACSLPA Council are up for renewal:
 President Elect*
 Treasurer
 Councillor without
Portfolio
(two
positions
available)
What to expect…
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Canadian Alliance of Speech-Language Pathology
and Audiology Associations meeting held in
conjunction with the CASLPA Conference.
Approximately 3–4 additional teleconference
meetings will be held per year.
Travel and accommodation expenses for meeting
attendance are covered.
Training and support are provided.
a Saturday in January, April, June and September,
9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. Meetings are held at the
ACSLPA office in Edmonton, but members may
opt to participate through videoconferencing.
Attendance at the AGM held in conjunction with
the ACSLPA Conference, typically on a Thursday/
Friday in October.
Executive members of Council (President, Past
President, President Elect and Treasurer) will also
attend 2–4 additional meetings during the year, for
committee-related work. Meetings are typically
held by teleconference or videoconference in the
late afternoon or evening.
The President and President Elect will also attend
the Canadian Alliance of Audiology and SpeechLanguage Pathology Regulators (CAASPR)
meetings held in conjunction with the CASLPA
Conference. The President will attend a further
CAASPR meeting held on a Thursday and/or
Friday in the fall.
Additional teleconference
meetings may be held if required.
(Note: Preference is given to having a minimum of one
audiologist and one speech-language pathologist within
the four total Councillor Without Portfolio positions on
Council.)
*ACSLPA Bylaw 10.6 states that the committee shall
annually alternate between obtaining a nomination of a
speech-language pathologist and an audiologist for
President Elect whenever possible. As such, the President
Elect for 2013 would ideally be an audiologist.
Please click the link below for more information or to
nominate someone today!
2013 ACSLPA Councillor Nomination Package
This is your chance to make a difference!
Deadline is September 1, 2012
Survey Results Regarding ACSLPA Member Participation on Council
T
hank you to those ACSLPA members who
participated in our recent survey regarding
participation on Council. Member feedback is
carefully considered in future planning for the College.
What do you think would be barriers to becoming an
ACSLPA Council member?
The survey was conducted May 4–22, 2012, with 178
members participating. Highlights of the results are as
follows:
Have you ever been a member of ACSLPA Council?
If you were to consider becoming an ACSLPA Council
member, what would be your preference for meeting
days/times?
What do you think would be the benefits of being an
ACSLPA Council member?
Participants were also given the opportunity to provide
comments; the following themes were noted:
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Reduce barriers associated with travel; consider
rotating meetings throughout province or use
e-meeting options
Provide financial compensation for participating on
Council
Provide members with better details as to what
Council participation entails, i.e., frequency of
meetings, dates/times, responsibilities/expectations,
etc.
Seek support of employers
2011 ACSLPA Annual Report – Now Available Online!
The 2011 ACSLPA Annual Report is now available! Also see the ACSLPA website
(www.acslpa.ab.ca – About ACSLPA – Annual Reports). If you wish to receive a
hard copy, please contact the ACSLPA office at admin@acslpa.ab.ca or call
780-944-1609 / 1-800-537-0589.
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New Guidelines for Management for Sudden Sensorineural
Hearing Loss
S
udden hearing loss (SHL) is a frightening
symptom that often leads to an urgent visit to a
physician or emergency room. Because this is
such a common symptom, physicians are not sufficiently
concerned by it. Thus, evaluation and treatment are
often delayed. New onset of ear blockage or fullness
can be a symptom of potentially serious conditions and
requires prompt evaluation.
Wax impaction, ear
infection or the presence of a foreign object in the ear
needs to be ruled out as a cause of hearing loss first. In
the absence of abnormal ear canal or eardrum
appearance, a SHL should be suspected.
Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) affects five
to 20 people in 100,000. The primary symptom of SHL
is a full or blocked ear. "Sudden" is defined as quick
onset (occurring over a 72-hour period) of a sensation of
hearing loss in one or both ears. Dizziness can be
present in 30% to 40% of cases of SSNHL. Sometimes
roaring or ringing (tinnitus) is also present in the affected
ear(s).
Sensorineural hearing loss indicates an
abnormality of the cochlea, auditory nerve, or more
central parts of auditory areas in the brain.
A cause for SSNHL is identified in only 10% to 15% of
patients at the time of presentation.
Emergency
intervention may be needed for rare, life-threatening
conditions of which SSNHL is a part. Causes of SSNHL
must be identified and addressed during the course of
management; the most pressing of these are vestibular
schwannoma (acoustic neuroma), stroke, and
malignancy. In some cases, the cause may not be
identified immediately and only after long-term follow-up
evaluations.
Idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSNHL)
is defined as SSNHL with no identifiable cause despite
adequate investigation. Up to 90% of SSNHL, however,
is idiopathic at the start and may be attributed to
vascular, viral, or multiple causes.
A maximum of 32% to 65% of cases of SSNHL may
recover on their own. Approximately one-third to twothirds of patients with ISSNHL may recover some
percentage of their hearing within two weeks. Those
who recover half of their hearing in the first two weeks
have a better prognosis. Patients with minimal change
within the first two weeks are unlikely to show significant
recovery. Prognosis for recovery is dependent on a
number of factors, including patient age, presence of
vertigo at onset, degree of hearing loss, audiometric
configuration, and time between onset of hearing loss
and treatment.
Early recognition of ISSNHL is
important. Although there is a lack of evidence-based
research, it is generally accepted that early intervention
10
may increase recovery. Treatment options vary and
include medications, surgery, and observation
alone. The effectiveness of these treatments, however,
is not known, considering that the cause is also not
commonly known.
Prompt recognition and management of SSNHL may
improve hearing recovery and patient quality of
life. Sudden hearing loss can be frightening and may
result in embarrassment, frustration, anxiety, insecurity,
loneliness, depression, and social isolation. Individual
or group counselling can be helpful in supporting
patients with ISSNHL. A “team approach” to the overall
management of these patients is encouraged.
The Audiologist The audiologist is the most qualified
professional to provide accurate audiometric
evaluations. Initial (identification) audiometry and followup testing are essential for proper management of
patients with sudden hearing loss.
Audiologic
assessment and rehabilitation needs to be addressed as
soon as the hearing loss is identified.
The audiologist will:
(1) work with your physician (and sometimes the
emergency physician) to determine the origin and
severity of the hearing loss for adequate treatment
options;
(2) provide diagnostic behavioural hearing testing and/
or Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) testing to
distinguish sensorineural hearing loss from
conductive hearing loss in a patient presenting with
SHL;
(3) counsel patients with incomplete recovery of
hearing about the possible benefits of amplification
and hearing-assistive technology and other
supportive measures; and
(4) obtain follow-up audiometric evaluation within six
months of diagnosis for patients with ISSNHL.
Audiometric Follow-up Repeated hearing tests
looking for progression can be used as an indicator of
patients with higher likelihoods of a lesion or
pathology. Serial audiometry will not identify a cause
directly and is not as effective as either MRI or
ABR. Growth of a lesion is possible without immediate
progression of hearing loss. However, given the nature
of the vast majority of lesions and the relatively low
incidence of pathology in patients with SHL, it is an
option. With shared decision making, serial audiometric
follow-up may be appropriate for older patients in whom
aggressive treatment is less likely, patients unable to
tolerate an MRI, or patients with other concerns leading
them to select a less definitive evaluation strategy with
the understanding that it could lead to a delay in
diagnosis. A progressive loss of hearing of greater than
10 dB (HL) in two or more frequencies or a drop in word
recognition scores of greater than 10% should trigger an
evaluation with an ABR or MRI.
Source: Stachler, R.J., Chandrasekhar, S.S., Archer, S.M., Rosenfeld,
R.M., Schwartz, S.R.R., Barrs, D.M., Brown, S.R., ... Robertson, P.J.
(2012, March). Clinical practice guideline: Sudden hearing loss.
Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, 146(3 Suppl): S1-35. doi:
10.1177/0194599812436449
The full-text version of this study is available online at:
http://oto.sagepub.com/content/146/3_suppl/S1
Brain Imaging Research in Alberta
I
recently interviewed Dr. Marilyn Langevin, acting
Executive Director of ISTAR, about her research
into brain imaging and teasing and bullying.
Dr. Langevin and colleagues Dr. Bhambhani from the
University of Alberta and Dr. Luc DeNil from the
University of Toronto are currently conducting two studies
using near infra-red spectrography (NIRS) to determine
the reliability of using this non-invasive method of looking
at neural activity. NIRS measures the difference between
oxygenated and de-oxygenated hemoglobin. A light is
shone into the brain by a tiny probe and light is reflected
back to the detector at a different wavelength. The
difference between wavelengths is an indication of
absorbency of light by brain tissue. Langevin indicated
that NIRS has better temporal resolution than an MRI.
Additionally, it is not as affected by movement, is lower
cost and it can be used with children, including
preschoolers.
Dr. Langevin is currently conducting two NIRS studies,
one with adults which is currently nearing completion, and
a second with school-aged children. She is currently
looking to recruit children who are right-handed, have no
other speech or language disorders, have not received
intensive therapy in the past year and are between the
ages of nine to 12 for this second study. She is able to
test in Calgary or Edmonton, and would require two
half-hour sessions with each child. Families will receive
accommodation if needed.
The adult and school-aged children studies are
precursors to a study with preschool children who are
closer in age to onset of stuttering.
The long-term goal of these studies, said Langevin, is to
be able to measure brain activity to further understand
development of stuttering in preschool population and
potentially children’s responses to treatment.
There is only one other
study looking at brain
imaging in preschoolers.
The findings of that study,
conducted in Japan (Sato,
et al, 2011) indicated
differences in functional
lateralization f or s ix
preschoolers, aged 3 to 5.
A third study, “A Stuttering Education and Bully
Awareness and Prevention Resource: A Feasibility
Study” conducted by Dr. Langevin and Dr. N.G.
Narasimha Prasad, will appear in the July 2012 issue of
Language, Speech and Hearing Services in the Schools.
Pre/post results showed children in grades 3 to 6 who
were not involved in bullying were less approving of
bullying after the Teasing and Bullying-Unacceptable
Behaviour program (TAB; Langevin, 2000)
was
conducted in their classrooms. Children in general had
improved attitudes toward children who stutter after the
intervention.
To refer a child for the NIRS study or to obtain more
information about the TAB program, please contact
Dr. Langevin at Marilyn.langevin@ualberta.ca, or
(780) 492-2619.
Submitted by Elizabeth Haynes, R.SLP
Communications Committee
11
Clinical
Conundrum
Note to Readers:
Clinical Conundrum addresses member
questions related to ethical, clinical practice issues in speechlanguage pathology and audiology. Although the question
discussed in this newsletter was submitted by an SLP, the
situation could potentially be relevant to an audiologist. We
encourage both our SLP and audiology members to read on!
I recently scheduled an
Q :language
assessment for a
initial speechchild, and the
mother informed me that she has hired a speech
assistant* who graduated from a formal training
program to work with her daughter in their home.
When I questioned the mother further, she
indicated that the speech assistant is not being
supervised by an SLP, but is focusing on therapy
targets that the mother has identified. I am feeling
quite uncomfortable about this arrangement and
am concerned that a) the assistant is hiring herself
out without a supervisor, and b) that there is an
expectation that I should be providing the
supervision. What should I do?
A
: The College has recently received several inquiries
regarding situations where a formally trained
speech-language assistant has hired themself out
privately and in the absence of an SLP supervisor.
Because the College does not regulate therapy assistants
(and assistants are not actually regulated at all in the
province of Alberta or anywhere in Canada at this time),
we have very little recourse regarding this type of
situation. There are, however, a few items worth noting:


Section 128(1) of the Health Professions Act
prohibits a person from representing themselves
or implying that they are a member of a
regulated profession unless they are in fact a
member of a regulated profession. Specifically,
an aide or assistant (or anyone else for that
matter) may not hold themselves out as, or imply
that they are, a member of ACSLPA. Should an
aide or assistant imply or suggest that they are
an SLP or audiologist, or have the same
credentials as an SLP or audiologist, it would be
important to contact the College to inform our
Registrar of the situation.
We encourage members to educate families
regarding the differences between an SLP or
audiologist and a support person, and the
recommendations for supervision of support
personnel.
First and foremost, support
personnel are not independent practitioners;
they are assistants to practitioners. Critical
information for families should include the fact
that the SLP or audiologist has the clinical and
theoretical background to properly assess and
diagnose speech-language / hearing disorders,
to develop and implement appropriate treatment
goals, and to provide supervision and
suggestions to others with respect to
implementation.
SLPs and audiologists are educated at a
master’s level (graduate university training), that
includes both theory and clinical practice.
Assistants, on the other hand, may have a
variety of educational backgrounds. There are
some formal speech-language assistant training
programs now in existence (e.g., In Alberta,
Grant MacEwan University in Edmonton and
Medicine Hat College), and more and more
assistants are graduating from these programs.
Some assistants come with other educational
backgrounds, while others may have very little
formal training, but have learned “on the job”.
The focus of the training for an assistant is really
on the implementation of therapy activities, as
well as other tasks that support the work of the
SLP or audiologist (e.g., ordering of materials,
material maintenance, administrative tasks).
Although assistants typically do assist SLPs and
audiologists with speech, language, and hearing
screening in order to identify which children are
presenting with challenges, the SLP or
audiologist maintains responsibility for the
interpretation of any screening measures.
Assistants should not be performing any formal
speech-language or hearing assessment on
their own.
So, to re-cap, assessment, diagnosis,
interpretation, and supervision should be done
by an SLP or audiologist, not an assistant, which
provides some of the rationale for why an
assistant should not be working independently.
Families may also be directed to ACSLPA’s
Guidelines for Working with Support Personnel,
which are available at the following links:
Speech-language pathology
SLP_Guidelines_for_Use_of_Support_Personnel_
Final_(ECopy).pdf
Audiology
AUD_Guidelines_for_Use_of_Support_Personnel
_Final_(ECopy).pdf
*For the purposes of this article, the titles speech, language, and/or hearing assistant, aide, and support personnel may be used interchangeably.
12

SLPs and audiologists in private practice must
carry professional liability insurance, and those
in public practice have professional liability
insurance that is provided by their employer. In
most cases, the SLP or audiologist’s
professional liability insurance covers support
personnel working under a professional’s
supervision. Even with this level of coverage,
however, a support person is not necessarily
exempt or protected from any action if they do
something wrong.
Do private practice support personnel carry
liability insurance? CASLPA does offer
professional liability insurance as a benefit for
their support personnel members. However,
according to their guidelines, CASLPA support
personnel members MUST work under the
supervision of an SLP or audiologist.
An
information sheet entitled Supportive Personnel
Working Collaboratively with Speech-Language
Pathologists and Audiologists is available from
the CASLPA website at:
h t t p : / / w w w . c a s l p a . c a / P D F /
supportive_personnel_working_collaboratively_eng.pdf

If, despite your best efforts at education, a family
continues to maintain a relationship with an aide
or assistant who is not receiving any
supervision, you could consider the following
options regarding how to proceed:
1.
Provide consultation to the aide or
assistant in question. Clarify (both orally
and in writing) to all involved that the
input you are providing is similar to the
consultation provided to any other
caregiver, such as a parent or a nanny,
who is providing follow-up and
completing “homework” in the home
between sessions. In this situation, you
are making it clear that you (and/or your
employer) are not taking on formal
supervisory responsibilities for the
assistant.
2.
Provide supervision to the aide/assistant
according to the guidelines set out by
ACSLPA. In this situation, a formal
agreement between all parties involved
(i.e., the family employing the support
person, the SLP, and the support
person) clearly documenting the
supervisory
relationship
and
responsibilities is recommended. Both
ACSLPA’s Guidelines for Working with
Support Personnel and CASLPA’s
Supportive Personnel Guidelines and
documents may be helpful resources.
The world of supervision and support personnel is
evolving. The Therapy Assistant Association of Alberta
(TAAA) is interested in pursuing regulation for their
members, and so we may see regulation of aides and
assistants in the future. In the meantime, it is possible
that we will continue to see an increase in the number of
support personnel hiring themselves out as private
practitioners.
Educating families and openly
communicating with them regarding the roles and
responsibilities of SLPs, audiologists, and support
personnel is one means we have of ensuring role clarity
and of ensuring that clients receive the appropriate
services by the appropriate personnel.
Susan Rafaat, R.SLP
Director of Professional Practice
Holly Gusnowsky, R.Aud
Director of Professional Practice
Clinical Conundrum addresses member questions
related to ethical, clinical practice issues in speechlanguage pathology and audiology.
We welcome your thoughts on this or any other
clinical conundrum! Readers are encouraged to
submit both their comments and their ethical clinical
issues in question format to Susan Rafaat
(director2@acslpa.ab.ca) for SLP-related issues and
to Holly Gusnowsky (director1@acslpa.ab.ca) for
audiology-related issues.
13
CAASPR Receives $994,619 in Funding to Develop
Competency-Based Assessment Framework
O
n February 6, 2012, the Canadian Alliance of
Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology
Regulators (CAASPR) signed an agreement with
the federal government to develop a competency-based
assessment framework for use in all regulated provinces
in Canada. The objective of the project is to improve
labour mobility for licensed workers and to expedite
licensure and labour market integration of internationallytrained and Canadian applicants through the
development of a national competency-based
assessment framework for both professions.
CAASPR will accomplish this by:
1. Developing a national centralized application
and assessment model for both professions;
2. Setting a common standard for access to the
professions through the development of
performance indicators based on competency
profiles;
3. Establishing profession-specific language
benchmarks in both official languages for each
profession;
4. Developing, testing and implementing an online
competency-based portfolio assessment tool to
assess and recognize all forms of prior learning
of internationally-trained applicants; and
5. Determining the feasibility of developing and
implementing common entry-to-practice
examinations for both professions.
CAASPR is the national federation of audiology and
speech-language pathology regulators in Canada. As
leaders in regulatory issues, members of CAASPR are
committed to work collaboratively on matters related to
their mandate to protect the public. While regulation
occurs at the provincial level, members of CAASPR
actively work on development and implementation of
national strategies for the advancement of regulatory
standards and audiology/speech-language pathology
practice in a consistent manner across Canada.
“Our government’s top priority is job creation, economic
growth and Canada’s long-term prosperity, which
includes helping newcomers put their skills and
experience to work faster,” said the Honourable Diane
Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills
Development. “Working in partnership with organizations
and the provinces and territories, we are improving
foreign credential recognition so that internationallytrained workers are able to find meaningful employment
and in turn, contribute to our economy and overall
competitiveness.”
Since 2007, the Government of Canada has supported
the professions of Audiology and Speech-Language
Pathology with three foundational projects. This series of
key investments has allowed the professions to establish
the building blocks which pave the way for the proposed
activities.
While CAASPR will act as the lead
organization, it will rely on the ongoing input of its
members, professional associations and academic
programs throughout the country. CAASPR will also
work with other professions to continually determine best
practices in the assessment of competence and seek
opportunities for collaboration.
Regular updates will be provided to project partners and
stakeholders.
Questions may also be directed to
Karen Luker, Executive Director, Canadian Alliance of
Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology Regulators
at office@caaspr.ca or 613-858-6544.
Funded by the Government of Canada’s Foreign Credential
Recognition Program
CAASPR Responds to APA Request for Feedback
on the Proposed DMS-5
T
he Canadian Alliance of Audiology and SpeechLanguage Pathology Regulators (CAASPR)
recently forwarded a letter to the President of the
American Psychiatric Association providing comment on
the proposed content of the fifth edition of the Diagnostic
and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). To
view the letter, please click: http://www.acslpa.ab.ca/
admin/docx/launch.cfm?ItemId=1541.
14
In addition, CAASPR, as well as other international
organizations, have endorsed the American SpeechLanguage-Hearing Association’s (ASHA) position
regarding the proposed DSM-5. To view the ASHA letter,
please click: http://www.acslpa.ab.ca/admin/docx/launch.cfm?
ItemId=1542. ASHA’s Recommended Revisions to the DMS
-5 that were submitted to the APA may be viewed by
clicking:
http://www.acslpa.ab.ca/admin/docx/launch.cfm?
ItemId=1543.
Ordinary Magic – A HUGE Success!
E
velyn Wootherspoon and Fif Fernandes presented
at the first annual Speech & Language Works Inc.
professional conference held in Medicine Hat on
March 16, 2012.
Ordinary Magic was well attended, with approximately 70
participants, including Early Childhood Educators, SLPs,
OTs, OTAs, SLPAs, Youth Workers, Psychologists,
Social Workers, Teachers, PTs and PTAs, Parents As
Teachers Program and Immigration Services.
Participants attended from Medicine Hat, Lethbridge and
surrounding areas.
Fif Fernandes discussed the power of story, laughter,
breathing and magic. She shared tools to create harmony
and community with infants, children, and adults from all
ethnic, racial and cultural backgrounds.
Evelyn
Wootherspoon presented information about how young
children engage in relationships from birth and use these
relationships to regulate their emotions, behaviour and
attention.
She discussed brain development, stress
responses and important social skills children need to
learn.
Strategies to use in everyday settings were
discussed to help participants support children of all ages
to develop healthy relationships and promote resilience.
The information provided by both presenters was very
relevant and easily implemented. Feedback from all
participants was very positive and we look forward to next
year!!
Thank you to ACSLPA for your generous sponsorship!
Submitted by Sandy Redden, R.SLP
Proceeds from the Ordinary Magic Conference were used to purchase
new toys and educational materials for the children’s programs at Medicine Hat Women’s Shelter Society. L to R: Natasha Carvalho, Executive
Director of the Medicine Hat Women’s Shelter Society; Katrina Barron,
MHWSS Treehouse Child Care Program; and Sandy Redden, R.SLP, Speech
& Language Works Inc.
Photo courtesy of Medicine Hat News
Early Child Development Mapping Project
(ECMap) – First Results Available
T
he first Early Development Instrument (EDI) results
available for Alberta were released on
May 30, 2012.
Alberta results for 2009 to 2011 combined EDI data for
more than 40,000 kindergarten children and indicated
that most children are developing well. However, the data
also showed that 27% were experiencing great difficulty
in one or more areas of development, compared to the
Canadian norm of 25%. Thirteen per cent of kindergarten
children in Alberta were experiencing difficulty in two or
more areas of development, compared to the Canadian
norm of 12%. Problems were most pronounced in the
areas of communication skills and general knowledge.
The Early Child
Development
Mapping Project
(ECMap) is contracted by Alberta Education for a fiveyear period (until August 31, 2014) to conduct research
on early childhood development in Alberta and build
community coalitions to respond to local needs. ECMap
is part of the Government of Alberta’s Early Child
Development (ECD) Mapping Initiative. The Initiative will
provide families, service providers, educators,
communities and policy makers with a picture of how
young children in Alberta are doing, so that they can work
together to support healthy development.
To learn more, please visit: https://www.ecmap.ca/Pages/
default.aspx
15
New Releases from the Health Council of Canada
Measuring and Reporting on Health System
Performance in Canada: Opportunities for
Improvement
This paper asserts that to support performance
improvement efforts across our health system in Canada,
there must be alignment of provincial and territorial
reporting on health system performance within a national
framework.
supporting health indicators in order to hold health
system leaders accountable for performance.
For further information, please
visit:
http://healthcouncilcanada.ca/
rpt_det.php?id=370
Recommendations are made for governments to set clear
policy goals with both measurable health outcomes and
Self-Management Support
for Canadians with Chronic
Health Conditions: A Focus
for Primary Care
Chronic disease in Canada
costs more than $90 billion a
year in lost productivity and
health care costs. And with half
of Canadians, many under the
age of 50, reporting at least one
chronic condition, these costs will continue to rise.
Successful self-management can help save health
Progress Report 2012: Health Care Renewal in
Canada
resources and keep patients
preventable incidences.
of
hospital
for
Self-management Support for Canadians With Chronic
Health Conditions: A Focus for Primary Health Care
explores how self-management support can improve
patient outcomes and better integrate the health system
for this purpose. It profiles a range of practices and calls
for targeted investments in self-management support
strategies.
For further information, please visit:
healthcouncilcanada.ca/pub/self-management.
To find out more, download the
healthcouncilcanada.ca/pub/progress2012.
The report provides a pan-Canadian view on progress at
the federal, provincial and territorial levels in: home and
community care, health human resources, telehealth,
access to care in the North, and health indicators. The
report states that while provinces and territories met most
of what was expected of them as laid out in the Accords,
the actions taken have not brought about large-scale
change. The report also highlights innovative practices
that demonstrate how progress has been achieved in
select jurisdictions.
16
out
report
at
What’s On Your Nightstand...DVD Player...Computer?
P
resentation Zen: Simple ideas on presentation
design and delivery (Garr Reynolds, New Riders
Press, 2008) – Author Garr Reynolds outlines
some ways to be more effective when giving
presentations. He asks at the beginning of the book:
“Since when can an audience read
and listen to someone talk at the
same time?” This was a novel idea
to me, but it makes sense: do we
want people to read, or to listen?
You can hand out a summary or overview for audience
members to read later. Chances are, he says, this
information will be far more useful after the fact than
bullet points in a small font, with three slides per page.
Instead of having presentation
slides that are filled with dense text,
Reynolds suggests that images be
used to support what we are
saying. A rule of thumb is to have
no more than six words of text on a slide. Ever.
This book has changed the way I give presentations. I
highly recommend it!
Reynolds also suggests that the planning stages of a
presentation take place away from a computer. In other
words, don’t sit down in front of a computer and develop
a presentation! This sequential process will have a
different outcome than a creative, brainstorming process.
Submitted by Sandra Vandenhoff, R. Aud
The recommendation above was submitted by a member of
ACSLPA and does not necessarily represent recommendations
of the College.
Hear and There: Humour at Work
I
work with adults who have sustained brain injuries/
strokes. During a session with a young man who was
experiencing word-retrieval difficulties, he mentioned
that as his wife was expecting, he was reading a book
about the process. He told me the title: “What to expect
when you are expanding”.
Paraphasic error or a
Freudian slip?!
Please send submissions for Hear and There: Humour
at Work to the ACSLPA office at admin@acslpa.ab.ca.
(Note that ACSLPA will exercise editorial control to ensure
that the humour presented is appropriate.)
Submitted by Chamine Meghji, R.SLP
Apps Update
A
CETS is excited to partner with the Family and
Community Resource Centre to host an ACETS
online professional forum. The response over the
last three months since the launch has been extremely
supportive and positive. Speech-language pathologists,
occupational therapists, physical therapists, educators,
therapy assistants, and care providers from health,
education and non-profit settings have registered
to discuss innovation practice using assistive technology
and augmentative communication across Alberta.
The forum will evolve and develop with use
and feedback. All participants are
encouraged to respond to postings, ask
questions and initiate new discussion
threads.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to email
either Melanie Matiisen Dewar (SLP) or Kim Beckers at
acets@albertahealthservices.ca.
The forum can be accessed at:
http://fcrc.albertahealthservices.ca/eforums
The intent of ACETS online is to:
 Provide an interactive and supportive forum for
discussion and sharing of resources, and
 Create a broad network of professionals across
Alberta with an interest in using assistive
technology and augmentative communication to
support individuals.
Please note: ACSLPA and the Communications Committee do
not in any way endorse these apps. These links are being
provided for information purposes only.
17
News from the University of Alberta
DEPARTMENT OF SPEECH PATHOLOGY AND
AUDIOLOGY
What’s New in the Department?
New People
Dr. Deryk Beal has been appointed the new Executive
Director of the Institute for Stuttering Treatment and
Research (ISTAR), effective September 1,
2012. Deryk joins us from Sargent College of Health and
Rehabilitation Sciences at Boston University, where he is
currently a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Fellow
and Visiting Scientist. He holds a Bachelor of Arts
(Honours) in Psychology and Linguistics, a Master of
Health Science, and a PhD in Speech-Language
Pathology.
Deryk is a clinician-scientist who specializes in the study
of speech motor control, developmental stuttering and
their associated neural correlates. In addition to working
as a speech-language pathologist in Ontario, he spent
seven years at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children as an
adjunct project director in the Brain and Behavior
Program and as a clinician-scientist in the Speech
Fluency Laboratory and Collaborative Program in
Neuroscience at the University of Toronto. He also
served as a research affiliate with the Speech
Communication Group in the Research Laboratory of
Electronics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Over the course of his career, Deryk’s research has
focused on understanding the structure and function of
the brain network for speech production for the express
purpose of developing new treatments for people who
stutter.
He is experienced in the use of
magnetoencephalography as well as functional and
structural magnetic resonance imaging, including
diffusion imaging. He has received several prestigious
research fellowships, has a strong background as a
clinical educator, has numerous publications in peer
reviewed journals, has given several keynote lectures,
and has prepared more than 50 posters and
presentations on his research. Deryk’s experience and
interests are an excellent fit for ISTAR, and we are
fortunate to have someone with his research expertise
and enthusiasm to lead the team.
Another new faculty member, Dr. Monique Charest, will
be joining the Department of Speech Pathology and
Audiology in July 2013. Monique is currently completing
her PhD at the University of British Columbia, under the
supervision of Drs. Judith Johnston and Jeff Small. She
is a CASLPA certified speech-language pathologist and
completed her BA (Honours) in psychology at Queen’s
University (1996) and her MSc thesis in speech-language
pathology at Purdue University (2002), under the
supervision of Dr. Larry Leonard.
18
Monique’s doctoral training was funded by the Canadian
Child Health Clinician Scientist Program (CCHCSP), a
highly competitive program designed to attract practicing
clinicians back to university training and provide
interdisciplinary research training for careers in pediatric
clinical science. Over the years, Monique has also held
positions in several laboratories (including the Speech
Development Laboratory at the University of Calgary, the
Child Language Laboratory at Purdue University, and the
Audiology and Speech Physiology Laboratories at
Université de Montréal, among others) dedicated to the
study of language and cognitive development, and
human communication.
Monique’s current research focuses on broadening our
understanding of the mechanisms and manifestations of
typical and impaired language development, the nature of
children’s language representation and processing, and
the potential contribution of a cognitive processing
perspective to a comprehensive understanding of
language ability. She has published in a range of peerreviewed journals, including the Canadian Journal of
Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, the Journal
of Child Language, and the Journal of Speech-LanguageHearing Research. We are looking forward to her arrival
in 2013.
Dr.
Hyunju
Chung began a postdoctoral
fellowship position in mid-September, 2011, working
under the joint supervision of Drs. Megan Hodge and
Karen Pollock in the Department of Speech Pathology
and Audiology and Dr. Terry Nearey in the Department of
Linguistics.
Following an undergraduate degree in
English Language & Literature and a master’s degree in
Linguistics at KyungHee University in Seoul, Korea,
Dr. Chung completed her PhD in May 2011 in the
Department of Communicative Disorders at the University
of Wisconsin in Madison. Dr. Chung’s doctoral research,
funded by a Fulbright Graduate Study award, focused on
acoustic analyses of vowel production and perception
patterns in two-year-old, five-year-old, and adult speakers
of Cantonese, English, Greek, Japanese, and
Korean. For her postdoctoral research, Dr. Chung is
examining acoustic-phonetic characteristics of vowels
produced by children who have speech sound disorders
(SSD) of unknown origin or in association with
neuromotor disorders.
New Academic Posts
Dr. Tammy Hopper has been appointed the new
Associate Dean of Research of the Faculty of
Rehabilitation Medicine. The Department of Speech
Pathology and Audiology has had a long history of
involvement in the Dean’s Office through this position,
starting with Dr. Anne Rochet in the mid-’90s, followed by
many years of service from Dr. Paul Hagler, and most
recently, Dr. Joanne Volden. Congratulations, Tammy!
New Adventures
Dr. Megan Hodge will be retiring at the end of
June. Megan has devoted her professional career to
helping those with motor speech disorders. She has
been a leader in the area and has spent the past 11
years connecting her passion for assessing and treating
motor speech disorders to developing software that is
used to assess children’s speech intelligibility at the word
and sentence level. This software has been licensed for
use in several countries including Canada and New
Zealand.
Megan’s first academic appointment in our department
was as a Sessional Lecturer in 1980. She was also a
Clinical Teaching Associate from 1981 to 1983, and a
Clinical Supervisor from 1983 to 1984. From 1989 to
1992 she was a Clinical Scientist at the Glenrose
Rehabilitation Hospital with a joint appointment as a
Lecturer in our department. Megan became an Assistant
Professor in August 1992, was promoted to Associate
Professor in 1996, and Professor in 2005.
Between 1980 and 1991 she taught undergraduate
courses such as SPA 397 (Clinical Practice I; 1980, 1981,
1982, 1983), SPA 494 (Clinical Practice III; 1983), SPA
488 (Diagnostic Methods in Speech Pathology; 1984),
SPA 495 (Clinical Practice IV; 1987), SPA 389 (Motor
Speech Disorders; 1990, 1991, 1992), SPA 385 (Speech
Science; 1990, 1991). Since 1992 she has taught SPA
502 (Anatomy & Physiology of the Speech Mechanism;
full course 1993-1997; intro & neuroscience sections after
that), SPA 503 (Speech and Hearing Science, speech
section, 1993-1997), SPA 505 (Speech Science, 19992001), and SPA 509 (Motor Speech Disorders; 19932010). Megan has supervised 38 SPA 900 projects,
three master's theses, and 1 PhD student, as well as
serving on the supervisory or examining committees for
many others.
Congratulations, Megan, on 30+ years of service to our
department and to those with motor speech disorders.
We wish you all the best in your new adventures. We will
miss you!
Faculty News
Publications
Dr. Jana Rieger published the results of a five-year
randomized control trial that was designed to assess
functional outcomes—speech, swallowing, and quality of
life—in patients with head and neck cancer as they
received two different types of treatments intended to
prevent dry mouth. One group of patients underwent the
submandibular gland transfer, in which the
submandibular saliva gland was moved from under the
angle of the jaw to under the chin, where it was then
shielded from radiation therapy. The other group took the
oral drug, Salagen, during radiation therapy. The results
showed that both groups had the same results in terms of
being able to speak properly, but the group taking the
drug had more difficulty swallowing and poorer quality of
life. The full reference is: Rieger J, Jha N, Lam Tang J,
Harris J, Seikaly H. Functional outcomes related to the
prevention of radiation-induced xerostomia: Oral
Pilocarpine versus submandibular salivary gland transfer.
Head & Neck 2012. 34(2):168-174.
Awards
Dr. Carol Boliek, and her co-investigator, Dr. Corey Tomczak,
were awarded an Internal Faculty of Rehabilitation
Medicine Grant for their study entitled “Expiratory muscle
strength training (EMST) and transcranial direct current
stimulation (tDCS) for improving respiratory intermuscular
coherence during speech and non-speech tasks”.
Congratulations, Carol and Corey!
Dr.
Karen
Pollock
and
her
c o- investigator, Dr. Hyunju Chung, were awarded an Internal
Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine Grant for a study
entitled “Rhotic vowel acquisition in children with and
without speech sound disorders”. Congratulations, Karen
and Hyunju!
Dr Jacqueline Cummine was awarded a 5-year Natural
Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
(NSERC) Discovery Grant for her study entitled
“Understanding Basic Reading Processes: A Behavioural
and Neuroanatomical Approach”. Congratulations,
Jacqueline!
Summer Clinic at Corbett
Corbett Clinic is in full swing again this summer. Our
Spring Summer Clinic runs from May to July. This clinic
functions as the students’ first clinical placement
experience. Students work in collaborative teams of four
– two direct treatment clinicians and two consulting
clinicians. Each student pair treats two clients, twice
weekly. Our Clinical Education (CE) team consists of five
CEs who are here year-round – Sue Decker,
Dallyce McGowan, Sandy Diediw, Teresa Hardy,
Lu-Anne McFarlane, and Debra Martin.
Dallyce McGowan says that she loves supporting the
students in the development of their clinical skills. She
particularly enjoys how the students create a vibrant
atmosphere at Corbett Clinic every summer, with
the energy and enthusiasm they bring to their very first
clinical experience. Teresa Hardy agrees, and adds that
she enjoys getting to know the students as budding
clinicians, outside the walls of the classroom. Sue
Decker’s focus for summer clinic 2012 has been on the
development of students' reflection and clinical reasoning
skills, while Sandy Diediw says that she especially
enjoys facilitating opportunities for students to work with
19
News from the University of Alberta (cont’d)
families in the provision of speech and language services.
Debra Martin says that she loves collaborating with such
an amazing team of clinical educators, who bring a
diversity of clinical experience and expertise to an
academically rich environment.
The creativity and
enthusiasm for the summer clinic is energizing and
contagious!
Student News
In addition to the year-round team, we have a wonderful
collective of Summer Supervisors who join us for a shortterm contract. This year we have the pleasure of working
with Sandy Paddick, Jennifer Hancock, Morgan
Whiteside, Wendy Mitchell, Megan Stock, and
Karen Pollock (not the department chair!) Consistently
our students are thrilled to have CEs who are excited to
share their clinical expertise and experience in this
placement setting. Here is what some of our Clinical
Educators have to say about the experience so far!
Melissa Skoczylas, a PhD student working with
Dr. Phyllis Schneider, was awarded a Social Sciences
and Humanities Research Council of Canada doctoral
scholarship for her work on investigating the
effectiveness of literacy intervention on language.
Melissa was a graduate of our MSLP program and has
been working at Tevie Miller Heritage School since then.
Congratulations, Melissa!
This summer position as a Clinical Educator at the
U of A has been an amazing and wonderful
learning experience! I am constantly grateful for
this opportunity to mentor and learn from a
fantastic group of students! ~ Megan Stock
I enjoy being a part of the student's learning
experience as they apply academic knowledge to
the clinical setting for the first time. It is really
rewarding to be a part of the energy, enthusiasm,
and growth that the students are demonstrating.
~ Morgan Whiteside
I have enjoyed all the excitement and exuberance
that the students bring to their therapy sessions. I
am really impressed with the student
implementation of iPad technology to support/
create therapy activities and data collection.
~ Jennifer Hancock
Our students celebrated May is Better Speech and
Hearing Month by choreographing a flash mob intended
to promote awareness of speech, language and hearing
difficulties. Check out the video at:
http://ualbertaslp.wordpress.com/2012/05/31/wrapping-up
-may-month/
Brea Chouinard, a PhD student working with
Dr. Jacqueline Cummine and Dr. Esther Kim, was
awarded the ACSLPA Centenary doctoral scholarship
and was also accepted into the Special Program in
Neuroscience (SPiN) Course through the Canadian
Stroke Network Trainee Association. SPiN has been
created to expand graduate students’ knowledge of basic
science and rehabilitation related to stroke.
It
incorporates a two-day program where experts in the field
of stroke will impart their research knowledge through
lectures, case studies, surgical insights and the latest
techniques used in rehabilitation. Congratulations, Brea!
Every year, the University of Alberta gives out two (and
only two for the whole university) recruitment
scholarships. This year, one of our new students, Mary
Bowden, received a recruitment scholarship for coursebased programs. Her undergraduate degree is from the
University of Toronto (Honours BA in Psychology and
Linguistics). We’re looking forward to welcoming Mary
into our program!
Speechies Speak Out!: Stay in the loop! Sign up to
follow us on our Speechies Speak Out Blog at http://
ualbertaslp.wordpress.com/
This is my second time being a CE and it is way
more fun the second time because I can find
things easier! ~ Sandy Paddick
This is the first time I’ve been a clinical educator
and am loving the experience. The students are
remarkable and their growth inspires me to keep
learning and trying new things. ~ Wendy Mitchell
20
New Long-Term Care Initiative
I
recently electronically interviewed Nav Phangureh,
R.SLP about her interest and work in advocating for
services in long-term care.
Can you describe your initiative?
My initiative is to increase speech and language
rehabilitation for residents of long-term care centres by
bringing in more speech-language pathologists and
educating staff. I have been doing this by contacting
MLAs by phone and by email. I created this initiative as
an opportunity for the MLA to really make a difference in
the lives of people in their community! Other things I have
been doing are:
1. Contacting professors (such as Drs. Tammy
Hopper and Stuart Cleary at the University of
Alberta) and asking them to let their students
know the difference they could make in the future
of our field by advocating for these services.
2. Contacting students and telling them about the
difference they could make by giving in-services
to long-term care centres about our profession
and communication strategies.
3. Using social media sites such as Twitter and
Facebook to increase awareness about what
impact SLPs have on residents in long-term care
centres, share success stories, and follow
politicians.
4. Encouraging speech-language pathologists to
start advocacy teams in their communities.
Several MLAs have contacted me stating they have been
moved by the letter or conversation and want to know
more! This is not a solo project. My hope was to plant the
seed to get some sort of
awareness and big movement
started in the right direction!
What got you interested in
this area?
I became interested in 2011,
when I did my clinical
practicum in Edmonton. I was shocked at the limited
number of speech-language pathologists who were
funded to work in long-term care centres. I became
interested because of the lack of awareness in long-term
care centres about what we do as speech-language
pathologists! Rhonda Kajner, R.SLP, inspired me to start
this initiative and has been very helpful to me.
What do you think the most critical needs are in
long-term care?
One of the most critical needs is to help residents with
swallowing disorders. This is a basic necessity of life that
requires the expertise of a speech-language pathologist.
Equally important is the need for residents to be able to
express their basic needs, increase communication
between staff and residents, and residents and family
members. If no action is taken, residents will have a poor
quality of life.
If you are interested in learning more about this exciting
initiative and how you can help, please contact Nav at:
587-229-6591 or navknit@gmail.com
Submitted by Elizabeth Haynes, R.SLP
Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine Dean Reappointed
for a Second Term
T
he University of Alberta is pleased to announce the
reappointment of Dr. Martin Ferguson-Pell as
Dean of the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine. A
duly constituted Dean Review Committee concluded its
deliberations, and the Board of Governors approved the
Committee’s recommendation that Dr. Ferguson-Pell be
reappointed for a second five-year term of office, to be
effective on July 1, 2013, following his one-year term as
Acting Provost (July 1, 2012 – June 30, 2013). For
further information, please see:
http://www.news.ualberta.ca/article.aspx?
id=D073C4D192FF46048D3074440BFAAA16
Congratulations to Dr. Ferguson-Pell!
21
Update from CASLPA
Private Chat
I
had the pleasure of attending
CASLPA’s 37th annual conference in
St. John’s, Newfoundland this spring. Alberta was
well represented with 42 delegates in attendance.
New this year, CASLPA had a free conference app
that provided the full conference schedule, room
locations and links to the speaker handouts.
At this year’s CASLPA awards banquet,
Amanda Ostertag was awarded a Student Excellence
Award. Amanda is an SLP student at the University of
Alberta.
Congratulations, Amanda! The clinical
research grant winners were also recognized at the
awards banquet. Congratulations to Brea Chouinard,
who won the 2011 Saint Elizabeth Clinical Research
Grant. Brea is based in Edmonton. Congratulations,
Brea!
The Alberta Speech & Language Association of
Private Practitioners is pleased to announce that
www.ASAPP.ca
has a new look!
…
Browse the website tabs to find:
This past May, CASLPA launched a new Speech and
Hearing Month website. Visit www.maymonth.ca for
Speech and Hearing Month news and resources.
SLP Listing
To view the 2012 Private Practice Roster
As part of Alberta Health Service’s Speech and
Hearing Month activities, Krystle van Hoof, CASLPA’s
Director of Communications and Public Affairs,
presented a webinar and teleconference on “Raising
the Profile of Your Profession”. This session was
attended by a broad interdisciplinary group of health
professionals.
About
To view FAQs for Families and FAQs for
Members
In June, CASLPA developed media releases for Brain
Injury Awareness Month and ALS Awareness Month.
To see these and other media releases visit: http://
www.speechandhearing.ca/en/media/media-releases.
For more details on recent CASLPA activities, the
December 2011 to April 2012 Management Report is
available in the ‘members only’ section of the CASLPA
website.
If you missed CASLPA’s 2011 AGM, you can still view
the CASLPA 2011 Annual Report at http://
www.caslpa.ca/english/resources/annualreport.asp.
Membership
To view how to become a member, update
your contact information, and dates of
upcoming Interest Group Meetings
Blog
To submit a useful resource and submit a
blog post
Employing agencies in Alberta will be sent a
notice of how to access the
2012 Private Practice Roster in order to assist any
clients in need.
• www.asapp.ca • info@asapp.ca •
It is a privilege to represent you on CASLPA’s Board
of Directors. Please contact me at alberta@caslpa.ca
or (780) 926-8865 if you have any suggestions or
feedback.
Melanie Osmond, R.SLP
Alberta Director, CASLPA
22
ACSLPA Celebrates
10 Years!
Open House
June 8, 2012
Jo Daugherty, ACSLPA Executive Assistant and
Rhonda Kajner, R.SLP
L to R: Leslie Wellman, R.SLP, Carmen Hengeveld, R.SLP,
Kay Read, and Jo Daugherty, ACSLPA Executive Assistant
Shanda Duggleby-Wenzel, R.SLP and
Melanie Campbell, Associate Professor,
Speech Pathology and Audiology,
University of Alberta
Mandy Watson, ACSLPA President and Holly Gusnowsky,
Director of Professional Practice – Audiology
Watch for information regarding further 10th Anniversary
celebrations to take place in conjunction with the
ACSLPA Conference and AGM in Calgary this October.
23
2012 ACSLPA Representatives
ACSLPA COUNCIL
President
Mandy Watson
Phone: (403) 402-5035
president@acslpa.ab.ca
Past President
Nausheen Khan
Phone: 780-440-3251
pastpresident@acslpa.ab.ca
President Elect
Laura Manz
Phone: 780-342-4603
presidentelect@acslpa.ab.ca
Treasurer
Sara Turner
Phone: 403-943-9724
Fax:
403-943-9745
treasurer@acslpa.ab.ca
Councillor without Portfolio
Naomi Beswick
Phone: 780-293-1607
naomisbeswick@gmail.com
Gabriela Constantinescu
Phone: 780-735-2660
Fax:
780-735-2658
writegabi@gmail.com
Sarah Blenkhorn
Phone: 403-228-4124
sb@apexhearing.com
MEMBER SERVICES
COMMITTEES
OTHER INFORMATION
GROUPS
Communications
Elizabeth Haynes, Chair
Phone: 403-283-1233
ej_haynes@yahoo.com
Alberta Association of
Audiologists (AA of A)
Larena Lewchuk
AAofAudiologists@gmail.com
www.aaofa.ca
Committee Members:
Carol Dearden
Chamine Meghji
Brie Schindel
Sandra Vandenhoff
Member Recognition
Sue Decker, Chair
Phone: 780-492-5407
Fax:
780-492-9333
sue.decker@ualberta.ca
Committee Members:
Carrie Gotzke
Irene Forsey
Karen Mayner
Lisa Noronha
ACSLPA STAFF
#209, 3132 Parsons Road
Edmonton AB T6N 1L6
Phone: 780-944-1609
Toll free: 800-537-0589
Fax:
780-408-3925
www.acslpa.ab.ca
Registrar/CEO
Anne Assaly
registrar@acslpa.ab.ca
Public Members
Melvin (Pat) Eisler
Doug Schindeler
Lynne Davies
Director of Professional
Practice
Susan Rafaat, R.SLP
director2@acslpa.ab.ca
REGULATORY
COMMITTEES
Director of Professional
Practice
Holly Gusnowsky, R.Aud
director1@acslpa.ab.ca
Registration
Joanne Palamarchuk
Acting Chair
Phone: 780-467-5549
Fax:
780-449-1476
joanne.palamarchuk@alberta
healthservices.ca
Committee Members:
Teresa Gagnon
Pat Grotkowski
Anne Lopushinsky
Competence
Wendy Mitchell, Chair
Phone: 780-460-8015
wendy.mitchell@alberta
healthservices.ca
Hearings Director
Jo Daugherty
Phone: 780-944-1609
Fax:
780-408-3925
headoffice@acslpa.ab.ca
24
Registration Coordinator
Susan Kraft
regcoord@acslpa.ab.ca
Executive Assistant
Jo Daugherty
headoffice@acslpa.ab.ca
Administrative Assistant
Leanne Kisilevich
admin@acslpa.ab.ca
Alberta Speech-Language
Association of Private
Practitioners (ASAPP)
Bonnie Chappell
Phone: 780-988-2217
info@asapp.ca
www.asapp.ca
Canadian Association of
Speech-Language
Pathologists and
Audiologists (CASLPA)
#1000, 1 Nicholas Street
Ottawa ON K1N 7B7
Phone: 613-567-9968
Toll Free: 800-259-8519
Fax: 613-567-2859
caslpa@caslpa.ca
www.caslpa.ca
Vision
ACSLPA is a leader in
regulating audiologists and
speech-language
pathologists.
Mission
ACSLPA protects and serves
the public by regulating and
ensuring competent, safe,
ethical practice of
audiologists and speechlanguage pathologists in
Alberta.
Canadian Academy of
Audiology
Box 54541
1771 Avenue Road
Toronto ON M5M 4N5
Phone: 416-494-6672
Toll free: 800-264-5106
Fax:
416-495-8723
caa@canadianaudiology.ca
While ACSLPA
encourages you to hold
onto this newsletter for
reference, please recycle
responsibly.
Newsletter & Website Advertising Available!
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or horizontal: 7.5" w x 5" h)
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For the above rates, your advertisement will appear
in the ACSLPA Newsletter for one issue and on the
website (www.acslpa.ab.ca) for two full months.
DEADLINES
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(Fall/Winter Issue)
Forward your advertisement to:
ACSLPA
#209, 3132 Parsons Road
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acslpa newsletter - Alberta College of Speech

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