If you think that being an SLP where you live in the United States is interesting and has challenges, then you will love listening to this episode. My guest, Amanda Blackwell, is here with me to give us a fresh perspective about what it is like to be a speech-language pathologist abroad.
After serving for a year as a volunteer speech-language pathologist at an orphanage in Guatemala in 2013, Amanda Blackwell lived and worked full-time in the country for over 7 years. Amanda completed a clinical doctorate in speech-language pathology and started the official professional association for local Guatemalan speech therapists (SomosTLgt), which has grown to more than 300 members over the past year.
In January 2020, she began working toward a Doctor of Education degree at Murray State University with the goal of opening a university for allied health professions in Guatemala to improve the quality of services across the country.
In This Episode, You’ll Discover:
- How Amanda came to live in Guatemala
- Challenges to the speech pathology field in Guatemala
- The struggles of the hearing impaired where Amanda lives
- How to stay positive despite challenges in the field
- The benefits of being bilingual for an SLP
- How teletherapy has helped Amanda stay connected to the US
I hope by listening in, you will gain a better understanding of the differences in each geographic area and the unique challenges that it presents to the SLP field.
Joke of the Week:
Q: What color socks do bears wear?
A: They don’t wear socks. They have bare feet.
Resources Mentioned:
Where We Can Connect:
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