We look after people who have difficulty with communicating and swallowing.
About this service
We assess and help people who have difficulties with communicating or swallowing. Our team works both with people admitted to Canberra Hospital (‘inpatients’) and people who attend hospital clinics and day therapy units (‘outpatients’).
If you don’t have a doctor at the hospital, we may re-direct your referral to a private speech pathologist or another community service.
All our services are free if you have a Medicare card.
We also have an Inpatient speech pathology service at North Canberra Hospital.
Who we care for
We work with adults and children who have:
- difficulty eating and drinking
- difficulty speaking
- head and neck cancers
- cleft palates
- voice problems.
How to access this service
You can’t refer yourself to our speech pathology services; you will need a referral from a specialist or your GP depending on which service you need.
- Swallowing clinic (difficulty eating or drinking): you need a referral from your specialist or another speech pathologist.
- Voice clinic: you need a referral from your GP
- Cleft palate clinic: you need a referral from your GP
- Head and neck cancer clinic: you need a referral from a specialist at the Canberra Region Cancer Centre
- Paediatric feeding clinic: you need a referral from one of our doctors at Canberra Health Services.
If you or your doctor need to contact us, you can call on (02) 5124 2230 or email us at speechpathology@act.gov.au
All of our services are by appointment only.
What to expect
If you’re an inpatient, we aim to see you as soon as we can.
If you’re an outpatient, we will put you on a waiting list and contact you when an appointment is available. We prioritise all our waiting lists according to how urgent the referrals are.
What to bring to your appointment
- Medicare card
- Any letters or correspondence from your GP
- Health Care Card and/or concession card (if you have one)
- Private health insurance card (if applicable/if you want to use it)
Where we’re located
- Adult Speech Pathology – Building 15, Level 1, Canberra Hospital.
- Children’s Speech Pathology – Building 11, Level 1, Centenary Hospital for Women and Children.
We have directions to Centenary Hospital for Women and Children and Canberra Hospital.
Resources
Information for referrers
Please see Community HealthPathways for detailed referral criteria and information for both adults and children.
Referral options:
- Phone: (02) 5124 2230
- Fax: (02) 5124 4633
- Email: speechpathology@act.gov.au.
