Multi-disciplinary practice is something that you may have heard before at university if you are a clinician or from your clinician if you are receiving therapy services. It involves working with people from different disciplines to collaborate on goals and support our clients to achieve their goals more effectively. The disciplines or professions we have at Hanrahan Health include Speech Pathology and Occupational Therapy.  

You have probably heard of some other professions before which also can make up part of your multidisciplinary team:

  • Psychology
  • Physiotherapy
  • Doctors
  • Teachers
  • Radiographers
  • Nurses
  • Audiologists
  • And many more!

These are a few of the other disciplines speech pathologists or occupational therapists may work with when providing therapy services to children, adults and families. 

Our health is incredibly important to us and impacted by many factors. Sometimes, we may need different areas of health knowledge bases to work together to achieve optimum health levels.

For example, a child who has difficulties understanding and listening to words may need support from an occupational therapist to help them to become regulated and concentrate more effectively, as well as support from a speech pathologist to help with their ability to follow verbal instructions. 

Or, a client with a voice disorder may benefit from working with a speech pathologist for their voice as well as a physiotherapist to strengthen the muscles for good posture and the muscles we use to breathe properly.

Your OT or speech pathologist may also talk to a child’s teacher to learn more about how the child interacts in the classroom, what areas they might need extra help with and provide some strategies to support teachers in the classroom or in the playground.

Working together in a multi-disciplinary team allows our team members to find the best ways to support their clients. All disciplines are incredibly important and by working together, we can make sure we are providing the best care that we can. 

The most important member of the multidisciplinary team is you!  All of our therapy at Hanrahan Health revolves around the individual goals of each and every client and their family.  You are the centre of the team and we are all here to support you to best achieve your goals, whatever they may be.