THE Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) in collaboration with the American-Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA) is working with the Ministry of Health to introduce a speech-language therapy and audiology degree programme.The four-year programme, if approved by the University of Guyana (UG) Academic Board, is expected to be covered in eight semesters, 160 semester units of coursework and practical.
Upon graduation, students will be eligible to accept positions in hospitals, schools, and clinics to provide a full range of speech, language, and hearing services independently as members of educational, medical and rehabilitation teams.
Professor and Chair of the Department of Communication Disorders and Sciences of San Jose State University, California, USA and Executive Member of ASHA, Gloria Weddington told the Guyana Chronicle that the programme will address a range of issues.

RANGE OF ISSUES
These include autism, intellectual disabilities, traumatic brain injury, cleft lip and palate, strokes, Down Syndrome and other forms of syndromes, birth defects and cancer of the head and neck.
Professor Weddington said a draft curriculum has already been prepared and has been submitted to the Faculty of Health Sciences, UG, for review and approval of the university’s Academic Board.
She said the proposed programme is a combination of courses from the original Medical Rehabilitation Assistant Programme, modified courses from the original curriculum, and additional courses in speech-language therapy and audiology.
This generic programme, Professor Waddington said, can be modified by faculty and staff at the University of Guyana to meet the needs of the people with disabilities in Guyana.
The programme, which will be supervised by ASHA, will be funded by the Government and will target an initial batch of 15 to 20 students.
According to the Ministry of Health 2014-2020 National Rehabilitation Services Strategy, the prevalence rate of persons with disabilities in Guyana is estimated to be 6.4 per cent of the population. This translates to approximately 50,000 persons.
WOEFULLY DEFICIENT
Since speech, language, and hearing disorders are the most common concomitant problems among persons with disabilities, the need for speech-language-hearing professionals is critical, but Guyana is woefully deficient.
The country currently has one speech therapist and audiologist, both attached to the Ministry of Health, providing services to thousands, far more than what they can handle.
Experts from PAHO/WHO say that the number of speech and hearing professionals needed to deliver a full range of services, including audiological services to 50,000 individuals, is approximately 1,000.
Professor Weddington said since it will take many years to recruit, educate, and graduate such a large number of professionals, there will continue to be a need for specialists and audiology technicians, to work under the supervision of speech-language therapists/audiologists.
She said there is a critical need for competent, well-educated speech-language therapists and audiologists in Guyana.
The needs of residents cannot be met sufficiently with one speech therapist and one audiologist, and according to reports, many of the 50,000 persons with disabilities receive insufficient services or no services at all.
Though there are creative programmes to train audiology technicians in the Ministry of Health and the Bachelor of Science in Rehabilitation Science (BRS) in occupational, physical and speech-language therapy at the University of Guyana, limited services have been provided to residents of the 10 regions of the country.
A local health professional says neither the technicians nor BRSs have the education or experience to provide services independently and therefore require supervision by the speech therapists and audiologist.
It was also noted that the level of necessary supervision and support is limited by the natural topography of the country.
SOLUTION
Professor Waddington said that in order to solve the problem of providing equal access to speech-language-hearing services in all 10 regions in Guyana, students must be recruited from each of the districts who plan to remain and work in their home districts after graduation.
ONLINE CURRICULUM
With most of the curriculum to be offered online, students from diverse linguistic, cultural, and geographic backgrounds will have access to it without having to travel to the university.
However, they are likely to complete practica in Georgetown where supervision will be available, she said.
The ASHA Executive said the instructors and clinical supervisors for the proposed programme will be volunteers recruited by the ASHA Ad Hoc Committee from among the 170,000+ ASHA certified speech-language pathologists and audiologists.
Most of the classes will be offered using distance education techniques, including Internet, videoconference, and videotaped lectures. The programme would be administered by UG and all decisions regarding it will be made by the university, the distinguished Professor said.
BUILDING CAPACITY
The overall objective of the ASHA-PAHO/WHO driven project is to build capacity of professionals, institutions, and/or organisations that address communication disorders.
The project is creating joint activities and providing technical support by ASHA professionals to assist in training and supporting educational programmes in countries selected jointly by ASHA and PAHO/WHO.
This collaboration (project) targets three of the five poorest countries in the region, namely Honduras, El Salvador and Guyana. These countries have expressed interest in improving their capacity to provide speech-language pathology and audiology services.
In Guyana, ASHA is providing technical assistance to the Ministry of Health through the strengthening of its national strategic plan for early detection and intervention of communication disorders.
Concrete needs identified in Guyana include technical assistance to the Ministry of Health to include in the National Health Plan and the development of a National Rehabilitation Strategy (Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology); review and update the curriculum of the Bachelor’s Degree in Medical Rehabilitation (options in physiotherapy, occupational therapy, or speech and language therapy); and technical assistance for the development of training programmes.
ASHA is a professional association for speech–language pathologists, audiologists, and speech, language, and hearing scientists in the United States and further afield.
The programmes in Guyana, Honduras and El Salvador exemplify ASHA’s objective to strengthen relationships and expand the influence worldwide in support of persons with disabilities.
In concert with PAHO/WHO, ASHA recognises the need to participate in global initiatives that focus on helping and addressing barriers of people who have communication disorders.

By Tajeram Mohabir