JPSIM Journal of Pakistan Society of Internal Medicine J Pak Soc Intern Med 2709-8729 2710-0804 Pakistan Society of Internal Medicine 10.70302/jpsim.v3i1.2204 jpsim.v3i1.2204 Original Research Barriers in Collaborative Practice among SLP/Ts and Special Educationists Working in Special Education Settings Malik Jamshaid Haider jamshaid002@outlook.com * Atia-ur-Rehman Qamar Rabia Imtaiz Rooma Muhammad Aysha Saghir Bari Sehrish Rehman Medical Institute Peshawar *Correspondence: Jamshaid Haider Malik (jamshaid002@outlook.com) 15 03 2022 2022 3 1 20 26 13 11 2021 08 01 2022 Copyright © 2022 The Author(s) 2022 The Author(s) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Objective

To investigate the needs of speech and language therapy service in special education settings. To specify that the particular speech language and communication needs of an individual cannot be sufficiently met by one clinician alone.

 Methodology

A comprehensive survey questionnaire was employed to attain a clear view of the similarities and differences between the groups of professionals, their understandings of terminology, spoken language indicators of SLCN, associated academic needs, behavioral challenges, and professional barriers to meeting the children’s needs.

 Results

Fluctuations in the response pattern for both groups were observed when it came to understanding of latest terminologies associated with SLCN, SLP/Ts were predominantly more aware of the terms than special educationists. Special education teachers were unexpectedly more aware of the academic and behavior features related to speech and language difficulties. However, training, advice as well as resource availability saw special educationists lacking whereas slp/ts showed a consistent pattern of having received the necessary training and resources.

 Conclusion

A special education environment is designed to fulfill an individual’s needs, whether they be physical, sensory, cognitive or communicative and to achieve that goal, a compatible team of healthcare professionals and special educators is crucial. In this particular scenario, there is an impending need for both speech language pathologists/therapists and special educators to understand the prerequisites of each other’s role and more importantly how they can assist to provide better Individualized Education Plans(IEPs), improve peer and staff interactions, prevent undesired behavioral interactions, evolve the academic experience and the therapeutic intervention necessary to enhance the quality of life of an individual with speech-language and communication needs.

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