The Lived Experience of Being a Speech-Language Therapist in the Western Cape Public Health Service

Abstract

This study explores the lived experience of being a Speech-Language Therapist (S-L Therapist) in the South African Western Cape public health service. The lived experience of seven S-L Therapists with varied clinical experience was illuminated using a qualitative phenomenological research design. S-L Therapists, working in the three Western Cape tertiary hospitals, provided an in-depth account of their experiences as S-L Therapists. The audio recorded interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using an adaptation of Colaizzi's (1978) method of analysis. The rigour and trustworthiness of the research process was informed by consideration of issues of credibility, applicability, confirm ability and dependability as they relate to phenomenological design. Five main themes emerged from data analysis: expectations of practice and practice realities; being part of the "underdog" profession: role definition and status; being connected; the holistic nature of the S-L Therapist's practice; and erosion or promotion. The implications for training and support of S-L therapists by managers and policymakers and peers are highlighted.

Well-being, job satisfaction, stress and burnout in speech-language pathologists: A review

“…Credibility was achieved for both papers through clear reporting of methods and consistency between data and results (Silverman, 2011). However, neither paper provided information about the research team and its reflexivity (although Warden, Mayers & Kathard, [2008] did include the gender and occupation of the interviewer), about how the final sample size was reached (e.g. whether the need for, or relevance of saturation was considered), or whether participant checking (i.e.…”

“…participants providing feedback on findings) took place. Only one (Warden et al, 2008) stated the methodological orientation that underpinned the study. The two mixed methods papers that gathered qualitative data through large-scale surveys (Heritage, Quail & Cocks, 2018;Loan-Clarke, et al, 2009) did not lend themselves well to the COREQ criteria, with some items being irrelevant.…”

“…Kaegi et al, (2002) found that the large majority of SLPs in their study had "enough authority to do their job" whereas, while interviewing clinicians, McLaughlin et al (2008) identified stress in SLPs that was due to a lack of autonomy. Warden et al (2008) reported that SLPs struggled to gain the same level of control when working in comparison to when they were student practitioners. However, they did not comment on whether this affected their job satisfaction or stress.…”

“…Kaegi et al (2002) found that 64.5% of the 47 SLPs in Alberta and 33% of the nine in Ontario were satisfied with the help received from supervisors and were also satisfied with their jobs. When interviewed, clinicians in Australia identified support as mediating stress (McLaughlin et al, 2008) and SLPs in South Africa cited the multidisciplinary team and administrative colleagues as sources of support (Warden et al, 2008). The available data therefore implies that a lack of support contributes to dissatisfaction and stress/burnout in SLPs.…”

“…Finally, clinicians interviewed by Warden et al (2008) reported that they found working in a teaching hospital environment to be a source of job satisfaction.…”