My Business Plan: Access to Better Communication (ABC)
Being able to speak and write was empowering for me as a child. Knowing an object’s name, understanding the meaning of a word, and putting a sentence together made me confident to explore and ask about the world. But there were times I stumbled through pronouncing a word properly. The vowels came out wrong and some people would laugh at how I said things. I felt powerless being unable to communicate clearly and resorted to closing myself off from others in my silence.
This dilemma is a bigger challenge for children with speech or language difficulties. They stutter through words even if the meaning is clear in their heads or they can’t produce sounds correctly as they speak. But with proper guidance and assistance, children can overcome this weakness.
Pediatric speech-language pathologists (SLPs), who are also referred to as speech-language therapists, work with children in order to diagnose, assess, prevent, and treat different speech, language, social communication, cognitive-communication, and swallowing disorders. These therapists guide children until they are able to speak properly and function in the world as they normally would.
How Access to Better Communication Empowers Children With Language and Other Functional Abilities
Louisana-based pediatric outpatient speech-language pathology clinic Access to Better Communication or ABC’s mission is to empower children with these kinds of disorders. Sheran Samuel Benton and Lisa Suire founded the ABC clinic back in 1996. The two knew each other from graduate school and wanted to open their own private practice. ABC was a fulfillment of this dream and since then, the clinic has expanded to nine employed speech-language pathologists and a clinical administrative staff. Today, ABC assists over 300 patients daily.
According to one of Access to Better Communication’s speech language pathologists, Kelly Shay, the clinic works specifically with children “who have difficulty producing speech sounds correctly, children with stutter, and those who have problems with their voice.” But ABC’s speech language pathologists do more than just address visible speech problems. Kelly elaborates that they also address all kinds of language disorders:
“We also work with children who have language disorders that include difficulty understanding others (receptive language) or sharing thoughts, ideas, and feelings (expressive language).”
ABC also helps children overcome any problems they have with expressing themselves and communicating with others. The therapists also aid children who have problems in developing spoken language, written language, and grammar.
Other Difficulties ABC Helps Children Overcome
The clinic also recognizes that language isn’t just about verbal and written communication. They also specialize in social communication disorders that give children trouble with verbal and nonverbal communication in a social setting. Apart from social communication, ABC also works closely with children who have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), dyslexia, and other kinds of reading disorders. The organization specializes in cognitive-communication disorders that cover problems with remembering, planning, thought organization, paying attention, and problem-solving.
“Our field offers an incredibly diverse ability to change children’s lives by helping them learn to communicate, read, and socialize — all critical skills for a successful and meaningful quality of life.”
Helping the Youth Reach Their Maximum Potential
ABC’s pathologists customize the therapy according to the child’s needs, requirements, and level. There is no “one size fits all” treatment when it comes to speech-language pathology. Kelly expounds that:
“The length of therapy really depends on the patient and the severity of their difficulties.”
The length of therapy really depends on the patient and the severity of their difficulties. Click To TweetBut no matter how long or short therapy can take, the speech or communication disorder is always manageable and can be overcome with the right amount of time.
Changing Thousands of Lives
ABC has helped close to 3,000 children since 1996. One of their patients is an adolescent girl that suffered from a severe stutter. She wasn’t confident in communicating at first, but after several sessions, she regained her self-esteem and now excels as a high school honor student. She even dreams of becoming a surgeon.
ABC’s patients have also grown up to become successful lawyers, doctors, dentists, parents, and investment consultants. The clinic’s passion for empowering children proves that with enough support and perseverance, any one of us can overcome every kind of difficulty and disorder.
Engaging the Baton Rouge Community
Since ABC has worked with children and their families for nearly 22 years, they establish relationships within Baton Rouge and its surrounding communities. Kelly describes that their reach extends to several professionals across different industries:
“We have relationships with many of the top local pediatric medical professionals, clinical psychologists, university training programs, and academic institutions from whom we are a trusted referral source.”
These relations are integral to how the clinic serves the community’s children and families. A big part of their community work involves offering workshops and seminars that educate parents and professionals.
They also participate annually in the Active for Autism walk, which generates funding for the organization “Families Helping Families,” a nonprofit that supports families of persons with disabilities.
ABC’s owners continue to be leaders in their field. They’ve served on the advisory board of the Gateway Transition Center, a nonprofit organization that offers independent living and job training for young adults with autism. They’ve also contributed to the Baton Rouge Area Foundation’s Comprehensive Study of Autism Spectrum Disorders Resources, indicating ways the community can care for individuals with autism and their families.
Relying on PrintRunner’s Expertise
ABC’s speech-language pathologists need to focus on guiding children and their families through challenges. This leaves them with little time to decide on the clinic’s various marketing materials. Yet letting the community know about their services is equally important to sustaining their business. Working with PrintRunner allowed ABC to focus on their expertise without compromising and sacrificing the promotion of their therapy services.
The clinic began working with PrintRunner when they switched to a new logo seen on their stationery, envelopes, business cards, flyers, stickers, labels, and magnets. Kelly attests to the expertise of PrintRunner and working with its services:
“As speech therapists, we have lots of talents but printing is not one of them. We love being able to select what we wanted straight on the website and upload our own PDF prints.”
We love being able to select what we wanted straight on the website and upload our own PDF prints. Click To TweetDo you need to print business flyers? Find out how you can get one done at PrintRunner.com.
ABC’s positive experience with PrintRunner encouraged them to print business flyers that showcase the clinic’s various therapy services. These flyers are informative and provide a solution for parents seeking to help their children.
Speech therapists spend their days traveling to and from different schools or finishing several therapy sessions. They can rely on PrintRunner’s specialists to identify and apply any changes that help the clinic’s marketing products appear professional.
To find out more about ABC’s therapy services and activities, you can follow them on Facebook.
“How has PrintRunner help grow your business? Tell us! Send us an email at blog@printrunner.com”.