Student Handbook

University Support Services

Speech and Hearing Clinic

The University of Connecticut's Speech & Hearing Clinic provides a full range of evaluation and treatment services to both children and adults - from infancy to the elderly - with speech, language, and/or hearing disorders. The clinic’s purpose is three-fold: 1) to maximize the communicative competence of individuals through provision of comprehensive assessment, treatment, consultative, and referral services; 2) to serve as an educational and research facility; and 3) to serve as a community resource.

Communication disorders served include hearing loss, auditory processing, language disorders, articulation/phonological disorders, stuttering, and voice disorders. Problems may be related to accident, illness or disease, although in many cases, a specific cause may be unknown. Special programs are available for improving English pronunciation.

Audiology Services:

• Complete audiologic assessment to determine the presence, type and severity of hearing impairment. In addition to routine audiometry, special testing is conducted such as immitance, otoacoustic emissions, and audiologic processing to determine candidacy for amplification and/or referral for medical evaluations as appropriate.
• Hearing aid evaluation to guide selection of appropriate amplification including hearing aids and assistive listening devices; assessment of performance and electroacoustic characteristics of the aids; and dispensing of hearing aids and other assistive listening devices. The clinic dispenses a full range of makes, models, and technologies of hearing aids.
• Aural rehabilitation to enhance listening skills and to provide orientation for successful hearing aid use for individuals with hearing disability and their families/others.

Speech-Language Pathology Services:

• Available to persons of all ages with problems in articulation/phonology, fluency, voice, swallowing, cognition, and/or language.
• Comprehensive speech and language evaluation to determine the presence, type and severity of the problem and the potential benefit from therapeutic treatment.
• Special testing as indicated by the person's age, general health and development, education or vocational needs, and other specific concerns.
• Enrollment in individual or group sessions for treatment.
• Planning for and outcomes of treatment are continuously discussed with individuals and their families/caregivers/legally designated other parties.
• Language-literacy programs provide assessment and treatment of language and language-based academic skills. These include: phonological awareness, reading development, language development, and written language.
• Consultative services to individuals and outside agencies.

Services are provided by audiologists and speech-language pathologists who are certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and licensed to practice by the Connecticut State Department of Public Health. All professional staff are members of the faculty in the University's Department of Communication Sciences. Graduate students from the University's academic program in Communication Disorders often participate in the clinic's services to clients, and there is frequent consultation with other faculty whose research and teaching in specific disorder areas are nationally recognized.

Clinic appointments usually are arranged between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays throughout the year. The clinic operates on a non-profit fee schedule basis. Financial support is provided for some clients by federal, state, and local programs such as Medicaid, Department of Income Maintenance, Bureau of Rehabilitation Services, as well as through commercial insurance coverage or other health plans.