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Welcome to Blue Bell Speech Therapy! Susan M. Hammond, M.A., CCC-SP has been perfecting her skills in speech pathology for over 30 years. She offers individual sessions in her home office setting. Parents are invited to attend. She is passionately committed to achieving the communication goals for your child and having fun along the way. Her students and families love to come to speech!

Call now at 610-279-8753 or email susanhammond33@comcast.net

  • Articulation
  • Language Delay
  • Autism
  • Apraxia

About

My private practice is distinctly different from other speech pathologists because parents are encouraged to attend each session.  By including parents in the speech sessions, I am able to demonstrate the specific techniques for everyday practice.  This way, therapy goes beyond the weekly session and children can make progress as quickly as possible. Also, I am the only speech pathologist in this practice. So, your child sees me at each visit which allows for consistency.   This is not the case at a multi-therapist, corporate practice.      

I hold a Master’s Degree in Speech Pathology.  I am certified by our national association, ASHA, and I hold a Pennsylvania professional license.  Certification and licensure are required for all speech pathologists who practice in Pennsylvania.  This insures that a speech pathologist has the necessary education and is current in continuing education.  Before opening my practice, I worked in the public school system, the Pathway School and Magee Rehabilitation Hospital.

I’ve gotten very good at this after 27 years!  The kids love to come in and have fun with Miss Sue at speech. They may be shy in the first session or two but after that, they run to the door!   We play games and learn sounds while Mom, Dad, or Grandma look on and learn how to practice over the next week. If any questions arise, I’m able to answer them right away to keep the process moving forward.  This keeps the child’s program united toward one goal…success!

From the moment I observed a speech pathologist when I was in high school until now I have been passionate about my work. If anything, my passion and dedication have gotten stronger. Watching children learn, accomplish, succeed and communicate brings much joy to me.

Insurance

I accept most insurances and I have affordable private pay rates. If you decide to use insurance, it is best to call them with a diagnosis code and a procedural code. I can provide you with these codes. At that time, I suggest you ask about deductibles, coinsurance and co pays. We can talk about insurance vs. private pay rates.

What Happens Next?

When you call me at Blue Bell Speech Therapy 610-279-8753, I will discuss your child’s needs with you.  At this time, I can talk about insurance payments vs. private pay rates.  I accept most insurances.  Then, we will make an appointment for an evaluation.  Parents are welcome to remain in the room throughout the evaluation. 

Areas of Expertise

Articulation Skills Your child may say “tat” instead of cat.  While you, as a parent, may understand your child, these sound differences make it difficult for other children and adults, such as his preschool teacher to understand him.  Speech pathologists call these sound production skills articulation skills.  I can test these sounds and determine which ones need to be developed.

Receptive Language Skills
Anything that you listen to and need to understand is called your receptive language. Your child may find it difficult to follow directions, understand certain sentence patterns, or understand certain concepts.   I can test each of the different areas of receptive language and develop a program to help your child  understand what is said to him.

Expressive language   Your child may find it difficult to put two, three and four words together  into sentences so that he can communicate his needs and wants to his parents, his preschool teachers and his friends.  I can test each of the different areas of expressive language and develop a program to help your child say what he is thinking.

Autism   Children with autism may have articulation, receptive language, and expressive language delays.  I have been treating children with autism for 27 years. I have the experience necessary to keep the child’s attention.  I have developed a full range of visual materials to take advantage of the visual learning strengths of a child with autism.  Half of my caseload has a diagnosis of autism.  St.  Christopher’s Hospital for Children and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia have referred to me for over 20 years. 

Apraxia of Speech   Children with apraxia have difficulty with the motor and coordination aspects of producing sounds in words.   Apraxia is often, but not always, associated with autism.  I can evaluate your child’s abilities and develop a program to produce sounds, then words and then sentences.

Benefits of Speech Therapy

Therapy is a fun filled way to improve your child’s sounds and sentences so that s/he can communicate better with the other adults and children in his/her world.  Speech therapy will allow your child’s preschool teacher, aunts and uncles to converse better with your child.   This will help your child feel more confident and have more control in his/her world.  It will reduce the frustration felt by many children with poor communication skills.  It will allow your child to develop improved social skills and feel more included at school. I’ve seen it hundreds of times – a child who is easier to understand and can communicate with words and sentences is a more comfortable and outgoing child.