Speech and Language Therapy Programme to be further developed in Ghana

The Ministry of Health in collaboration with the University of Columbia Speech and Language Therapy Teachers College, New York, USA, is working  to further develop a Speech and Language Therapy programme in Ghana.
The therapy programme will help to identify a person's communication challenges and then develop recommendations that the family and teaching or medical staff could implement to help the persons with speech and language disability communicate well.
The programme  also includes the training of students from the medical school to become specialists in Speech and Language Therapy, and will help create awareness about the nature of the impediment and educate Ghanaians about it not being anything to be ashamed of.
The University has been organising the programme for the past five years and  has helped to support and train doctors, teachers and specialists to treat patients,students and those suffering from speech and language impairments.
Speech and language impairment is when a person is unable to produce speech sounds correctly or fluently, or has problems with his or her voice. Difficulties pronouncing sounds, or articulation disorders, and stuttering are examples of speech disorders.
The Deputy Health Minister, Mr Rojo Mettle Nunoo, at a meeting with the University’s directors and eighteen students from the university today(Thursday) at Korle Bu, stated that his ministry was happy to join hands to implement such a beneficial programme for all Ghanaians, and expressed hope that the sector  Ministry will establish a training unit at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital for future training and development purposes.
According to him, the programme should ideally be opened to all to have a greater impact on schools, especially the Nursery and Primary School levels, as well as the general public.
Mr Nunoo told the Daily Graphic that Ghana should be able to train 15,000 specialists in this field in order to improve and continue to develop the training of specialists to cater for affected  people in the future. .
He mentioned that it was important to raise awareness of the social challenges faced by those suffering from speech and language difficulties, whether they had suffered from a stroke, severe trauma or had faced difficulties since birth.
The Director of the Columbia University Speech and Language Therapy Teachers College, Mrs Cate Crowley, was optimistic that Ghanaians would be able to train their own speech and language therapists and stressed the importance of diminishing discrimination against those affected by speech and language impediments.
The students have worked at two major teaching hospitals in Accra and Kumasi, within Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) Department, cleft palate, and craniofacial departments, and with the unit schools for students with disabilities. They have been working with stroke victims in an attempt to improve communication through the use of pictures and spoke positively of its success.