Telepractice in Speech–Language Therapy: The Use of Online Technologies for Parent Training and Coaching

Abstract

Researchers and practitioners have found that telepractice is an effective means of increasing access to high-quality services that meet children’s unique needs and is a viable mechanism to deliver speech–language services for multiple purposes. We offer a framework to facilitate the implementation of practices that are used in direct speech–language therapy into parent training and coaching. We overlay the use of telepractice onto parent training and coaching to provide a framework that guides the conversion of practices used in direct service to parent training and coaching programs that can be used via telepractice. We include recommendations for addressing common challenges to providing parent training and coaching via telepractice with an example of the framework’s application in Early Intervention. Using this framework, speech–language pathologists can combine telepractice with direct services by teaching and coaching parents in the use of strategies to improve their children’s communication skills.