SLP Treatment Planning & Therapeutic Interventions 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A client with Parkinson's disease presents with hypophonia and reduced vocal intensity. Which intervention has the strongest evidence base for this population?
- Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT LOUD) (Correct answer)
- Resonance therapy
- Confidential voice technique
- Vocal Function Exercises (VFE)
Correct answer: Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT LOUD)
LSVT LOUD has the strongest evidence base for improving vocal loudness and speech intelligibility in Parkinson's disease.
Question 2: Which augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) strategy is MOST appropriate for a beginning communicator who relies on unconventional means such as reaching and vocalizing?
- Partner-assisted scanning with symbol-based communication board
- High-tech speech-generating device with dynamic display
- Voice output communication aid with alphabet access
- PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System) Phase I training (Correct answer)
Correct answer: PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System) Phase I training
PECS Phase I trains the person to physically exchange a picture for a desired item, teaching intentional communication without requiring prerequisite pointing skills.
Question 3: A preschooler is receiving language intervention using focused stimulation. What is the SLP's primary technique in this approach?
- Providing many models of a target form in meaningful contexts without requiring production (Correct answer)
- Requiring the child to repeat target structures immediately after each model
- Using error correction and imitation drills in structured trials
- Administering frequent probes to measure percent correct responses
Correct answer: Providing many models of a target form in meaningful contexts without requiring production
Focused stimulation provides multiple models of a target form in naturalistic contexts, allowing the child to acquire the form without required responses.
Question 4: Which compensatory strategy is MOST appropriate for a patient with severe Wernicke's aphasia who has limited comprehension?
- Using short, simple utterances combined with gestural and written cues (Correct answer)
- Providing lengthy verbal explanations with complex syntax
- Emphasizing auditory bombardment with single words
- Training self-monitoring of paraphasic errors
Correct answer: Using short, simple utterances combined with gestural and written cues
Multimodal cuing (short utterances, gestures, and written supports) maximizes comprehension for clients with severe receptive aphasia.
Question 5: A 4-year-old is being treated for language delay using Enhanced Milieu Teaching (EMT). Which technique involves withholding a desired item to create a communication opportunity?
- Time delay
- Mand-model
- Incidental teaching
- Environmental arrangement (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Environmental arrangement
Environmental arrangement strategically places desired items out of reach or in view to create natural communicative need.
Question 6: An adult with ALS is losing the ability to speak. Which AAC planning principle should guide early intervention before speech is fully lost?
- Begin voice banking and message banking while intelligible speech remains (Correct answer)
- Wait until speech is completely unintelligible before introducing AAC
- Focus exclusively on non-electronic low-tech options to avoid device dependency
- Introduce AAC only after the client's family requests it
Correct answer: Begin voice banking and message banking while intelligible speech remains
Voice banking captures the person's natural voice early for use in speech-generating devices before dysarthria severely degrades speech quality.
Question 7: Which intervention approach uses systematic manipulation of utterance length and complexity to shape a child's language output?
- Vertical structuring / scaffolding of mean length of utterance (Correct answer)
- Whole-language immersion
- Oral motor stimulation therapy
- Sensory integration therapy
Correct answer: Vertical structuring / scaffolding of mean length of utterance
Vertical structuring scaffolds language production by building from single words to longer utterances systematically within a session.
SLP Treatment Planning & Therapeutic Interventions 3
A client with Parkinson's disease presents with hypophonia and reduced vocal intensity.
Which intervention has the strongest evidence base for this population?