The waiting list continues to grow. Today, in Loir-et-Cher, 1,200 people are waiting to have an appointment with the speech therapist – an incredible figure when we know that, to be able to consult, you must already have a prescription from your doctor.
The needs are diverse: recovery of language after a stroke, “dys” disorders, difficulties with speech, language, communication, learning and swallowing, etc.
Currently, it is therefore not uncommon to wait several months to obtain an appointment with one of the 97 professionals in the department – 65 self-employed speech therapists, 32 employees (but not all full-time).
“Our waiting list is always full”regrets Hélène Sagne, speech therapist for twenty years and member of the office of the Collective of speech therapists of Loir-et-Cher (Colec). “And we have been complaining about this problem for over ten years! »she recalls.
The need for speech therapy care is increasing while the number of trained speech therapists is growing too slowly.
This situation poses a serious problem in terms of public health: the absence of care leads to risks and complications which have a serious impact on the quality of life of patients.
Hélène Sagne, who practices in Blois, talks about “loss of luck”especially for people with stroke who are at risk “more massive attacks”. The recovery rate is greatest in the two months after the accident, then in six months.
It is impossible for speech therapists to respond to all the requests from desperate patients, who come so far as to knock on the door of the office that Hélène Sagne shares with Bérangère Lepain, in Blois. Faced with these unreasonable waiting times, the departmental council has made a commitment to encourage the arrival of interns who need to be trained, insists the first.
Le Samu
speech therapists
But this is not enough, which is why the National Federation of Speech Therapists created in July 2024 allo-ortho.coma site that allows the general public to access information to answer questions and concerns. The idea is also to make it possible to manage speech therapy emergencies: “He’s a speech therapy Samu” summarizes Hélène Sagne, with “three regulatory speech therapists for our department”.
The “allo-ortho.com” site: how does it work?
© Screenshot NR
Multiply the sessions
“The ideacontinues Bérangère Lepain, also a speech therapist, is to prepare for the future appointment, and to refer the person first to an ENT or ophthalmologist”. “It is estimated that between 15 and 20% of the assessments we carry out do not involve speech therapy problems », Supports her colleague Hélène Sagne. At the end of the line, the regulating speech therapists guide people “either on the famous waiting list; either the problem is not speech therapy”.
Once the speech therapy problem is proven, and the appointment is made, the patient will have to follow several sessions of around thirty minutes each. “We are in care, explains Hélène Sagne, with psychological support but also a recovery, education or re-education approach. » And Bérangère Lepain denounces, to conclude, the excessive use of screens which gives them even more work: “The impact on oral language and sleep no longer needs to be demonstrated. This causes communication problems and vocabulary becomes poorer. »
How does a speech therapy session take place?
> Speech therapy is a health profession belonging to the family of care professions.
> It consists of preventing, evaluating and treating difficulties or disorders: in oral and written language and communication, oro-myofacial functions, other cognitive activities including those linked to phonation, speech, oral and written language, mathematical cognition.
> Depending on age and problem, the session lasts between 30 minutes and an hour.
> The sessions must be repeated sufficiently to provide long-term results.
> The methods involve play, repetition, rhythm, dialogue or specific material.
> A speech therapist can use standardized tests, such as language tests which assess verbal comprehension, vocabulary and grammar (using game materials, software, etc.). But there are also non-standardized tests that can be adapted to the specific needs of the patient.
