Meeting Complex Communication Needs Associated With Genetic Syndromes: A Call to Interprofessional Education and Practice

Abstract

Effective communication is a significant challenge for many persons with genetic syndromes. Too often intellectual, sensory, and/or physical limitations interact to create overwhelmingly complex clinical scenarios. Faced with addressing daunting needs, providers can feel both unprepared and inadequate. This issue of Perspectives identifies complexities associated with many genetic syndromes and promotes interprofessional education/collaborative practice for speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and other health and educational professionals charged with this group's care. While the issue includes several papers that discuss “syndrome-specific” challenges and solutions, this article describes interprofessional education and practice and provides a reasoned argument for their application in the delivery of AAC services for individuals with genetic syndromes who have the most complex communication needs. A brief illustrative case example is provided describing an interprofessional education (IPE) educational u...