Speech
Pathology
Speech Pathology Services
Clinically reviewed by Ann-Maree Wignall, Speech Pathologist (SPA Membership 14885) at Ability Rehab — last reviewed September 2026.
Speech Pathology in Ivanhoe East — NDIS-Registered Speech Therapy Melbourne
Speech pathology supports people of all ages with speech, language, literacy, and social communication. It also covers voice, fluency, multimodal communication (AAC), and swallowing. That might mean recovering function after a stroke, building language skills, or managing a progressive neurological condition. At Ability Rehab in Ivanhoe East, our speech pathologists deliver evidence-based assessment and intervention. Above all, we tailor that work to the client's strengths, goals, and clinical needs.
Our team works with people experiencing acquired brain injury and stroke. We also support progressive neurological diagnoses, including Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis. Similarly, we work with dysphagia, voice disorders, complex communication needs, language and literacy difficulties, and stuttering. In addition, we support clients who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems.
Ability Rehab is a registered NDIS provider, supporting NDIA-managed, plan-managed, and self-managed participants. We deliver speech pathology from our Ivanhoe East clinic and via telehealth. In addition, we visit clients at home, in the community, at school, and in aged care anywhere across Melbourne. Our work concentrates particularly across the inner-north-east. That includes Heidelberg, Kew, Doncaster, Bundoora, Eltham, Greensborough, and Balwyn.
For children, visit our dedicated paediatric speech pathology page. It also covers bilingual therapy in Mandarin and English.
Three Ways to Access Therapy
We offer three ways to access therapy, so you can choose whichever works best for your family.
What is Speech Pathology?
Speech pathology is a client-centred allied health profession focused on communication and swallowing. Communication includes speaking, understanding, reading, writing, and social communication. It also covers voice, fluency, and the use of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) methods. Swallowing disorders, meanwhile, are also called dysphagia. Here the speech pathologist works to make eating, drinking, and taking medication safer and more enjoyable.
Speech pathologists train to assess and treat a wide range of conditions across the lifespan. The work draws on a deep understanding of the brain, voice, oral and throat structures, and language systems. Specifically, it looks at how those systems interact. It also considers how disability, injury, illness, or developmental difference can affect them.
Therapy is always practical and outcome-focused. We develop goals collaboratively with each client and their support network. We then measure progress against meaningful, real-world participation, rather than clinical scores alone.
What Does a Speech Pathologist Do?
What a speech pathologist does in a session depends on the client's clinical needs and goals. For someone recovering from a stroke, it might involve language rehabilitation or voice exercises. It might also mean swallowing assessment and management. For a client with Parkinson's disease, it might be voice therapy to improve speech volume and clarity. For someone with complex communication needs, the focus shifts. Specifically, it moves to assessing and prescribing an AAC system that gives the person a reliable voice.
Beyond direct therapy, our speech pathologists conduct comprehensive assessments and prescribe communication aids. They also train support networks in mealtime safety and communication strategies. In addition, they produce clinical reports for funding bodies and other professionals. Where appropriate, sessions take place in the client's home, aged care facility, or community setting. That way, clients practise strategies in the environments where they actually matter.
How Speech Pathology Supports Communication, Swallowing, and Daily Life
Speech pathology can support a wide range of outcomes, depending on each client's situation and goals. The work goes beyond a single symptom. Instead, it considers how communication and swallowing affect a person's daily life, relationships, and community participation.
Speech pathology may support areas such as:
- Recovering or maintaining speech, language, and communication after stroke or brain injury
- Managing voice changes due to neurological conditions, occupational use, or medical events
- Assessing and managing swallowing difficulties (dysphagia) safely
- Prescribing and training in AAC systems for clients with complex communication needs
- Supporting children and adults with language, literacy, and social communication
- Working through stuttering and speech sound difficulties
- Cognitive-communication rehabilitation following acquired brain injury
- Mealtime education and safety planning for clients, families, and support workers
Therapy is always individualised. We work closely with clients, their families, support coordinators, GPs, and other treating professionals. As a result, care stays coordinated and aligned with the person's broader goals.
How a Speech Pathologist Can Help
Our speech pathologists work with clients across a wide range of presentations. The common thread is simple. Something about communication or swallowing is making everyday participation harder than it should be. So the client and their support network look for evidence-based, goal-directed support.
We have experience supporting people experiencing:
- Acquired brain injury and stroke — including aphasia, dysarthria, apraxia of speech, and cognitive-communication difficulties
- Progressive neurological conditions — including Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, motor neurone disease, and dementia. Here the focus is on maintaining communication and swallowing for as long as possible
- Dysphagia — swallowing assessment, management, and mealtime planning across home, community, and aged care settings
- Voice disorders — including occupational voice use for teachers and singers, and vocal fold dysfunction. This also covers voice changes linked to neurological conditions or medical treatment
- Complex communication needs and AAC — assessment, prescription, and training in low-tech and high-tech communication systems
- Speech, language, and literacy difficulties — across children, adolescents, and adults
- Social communication and pragmatic language — including support for autistic clients and clients with neurodevelopmental differences
- Stuttering and speech clarity — for children, adolescents, and adults
If you're not sure whether speech pathology is the right fit, our team is happy to talk it through. So you can submit a referral or call us on 0478 491 188.
NDIS Speech Pathology
Ability Rehab is a registered NDIS provider. As a result, a significant portion of our speech pathology work goes to NDIS participants. We work with all NDIS plan management types: NDIA-managed, plan-managed, and self-managed. We also support participants across capacity-building, core supports, and complex disability needs.
Common NDIS-funded speech pathology supports include:
- Communication assessment and therapy — including aphasia rehabilitation, language support, social communication therapy, and voice therapy
- Dysphagia assessment and management — comprehensive mealtime assessment, safe swallowing strategies, and support network training
- AAC assessment and prescription — assessment, trial, and recommendation of low-tech and high-tech communication aids, including reports for AT funding requests
- Capacity-building therapy — goal-directed intervention aligned with NDIS plan goals
- Supports for progressive and complex conditions — including cognitive-communication rehabilitation
We work closely with support coordinators, plan managers, and the participant's wider support network. As a result, reports stay clear, recommendations stay evidence-based, and therapy stays aligned with NDIS guidelines.
Our Speech Pathology Services
Our speech pathology services include:
Meet Our Speech Pathology Team
Our speech pathologists bring broad clinical experience across dysphagia, neurological rehabilitation, AAC, voice, language, and bilingual practice. Each clinician contributes a slightly different focus. As a result, we can match clients with the therapist best suited to their presentation and goals. You can find full bios for every clinician on our Our Clinicians page.
Speech Pathology Across Melbourne
Our clinic is based in Ivanhoe East, and we work with clients anywhere across Melbourne. We do that through three service modes: in-clinic, telehealth, and mobile home visits. Most of our in-home, school, aged care, and community sessions, however, concentrate across Melbourne's north-east, including:
Where therapy happens makes a real difference to outcomes. This matters particularly for goals around mealtimes, communication in social settings, or daily routines at home. Strategies grounded in the actual environment tend to translate into more practical, sustainable change.
Why Choose Ability Rehab for Speech Pathology?
Choosing the right speech pathology provider matters. At Ability Rehab, clinicians with deep clinical experience deliver our speech pathology. They bring a genuine commitment to evidence-based, person-centred practice. Above all, our approach prioritises clear communication with clients and their networks. We also focus on individualised goals and on experience with complex presentations.
Clients and referrers choose Ability Rehab because we offer:
- An experienced speech pathology team
- Experience across dysphagia, AAC, voice, and progressive neurological conditions
- Bilingual speech pathology in Mandarin and English
- Flexible therapy delivery across clinic, telehealth, home, aged care, school, and community settings
- Registered NDIS provider with clear communication and reporting
Our team values trauma-informed, neurodiversity-affirming, and culturally safe practice. We therefore deliver therapy in a way that respects each client's autonomy, identity, and lifestyle.
Getting Started With Speech Pathology
Getting started with speech pathology at Ability Rehab is straightforward. First, we have a brief conversation. That call covers what's prompting the referral, the goals the client is working towards, and the funding pathway in place.
From there, we'll arrange an initial assessment. It builds a clearer picture of the client's strengths, communication and swallowing needs, and goals. We then plan therapy collaboratively. That includes whether sessions work best in clinic, at home, in aged care, at school, or in the community. Ongoing review keeps support relevant as goals progress and circumstances change.
Our team can also support clients through the practical side of getting started. For example, funding pathway questions, NDIS plan navigation, and coordination with support coordinators, GPs, or other professionals.
Ready to get started, or want to talk through whether speech pathology is the right fit?
Speech Pathology – Frequently Asked Questions
What is speech pathology?
Speech pathology is a client-centred allied health profession focused on communication and swallowing. Communication includes speaking, understanding, reading, writing, and social communication. It also covers voice, fluency, and the use of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) methods. Swallowing disorders, meanwhile, are also called dysphagia. Here the speech pathologist works to make eating, drinking, and taking medication safer and more enjoyable. Speech pathologists train to assess and treat a wide range of conditions across the lifespan.
Who can benefit from speech pathology?
Speech pathology is relevant for anyone whose communication or swallowing has changed. That change might come from injury, illness, disability, or developmental difference. At Ability Rehab, we work with acquired brain injury, stroke, and progressive neurological conditions. Similarly, we support dysphagia, voice disorders, and complex communication needs. Language and literacy difficulties and stuttering are also part of our caseload. In addition, we run a dedicated paediatric speech pathology service for children, including bilingual Mandarin and English therapy.
What's the difference between a speech pathologist and a speech therapist?
"Speech pathologist" and "speech therapist" are often used interchangeably and refer to the same profession. In Australia, the formal title is "speech pathologist". Our qualified practitioners also hold membership with Speech Pathology Australia (SPA), the national professional body. The term "speech therapy" is also commonly used to describe the work itself.
Do I need a referral to see a speech pathologist?
For private clients and NDIS participants, you need no formal referral. However, a GP referral is needed for therapy through Medicare's Chronic Condition Management (CCM) plan. For NDIS participants, support coordinators, plan managers, or family members can also refer directly. You can submit a referral online via our Make a Referral page. Alternatively, call us on 0478 491 188.
How is speech pathology funded?
Several funding pathways cover speech pathology at Ability Rehab. The NDIS is the most common, whether NDIA-managed, plan-managed, or self-managed. Medicare's Chronic Condition Management (CCM) plan also applies, with a GP referral. Private health insurance may contribute, depending on your level of cover. In addition, we work with Home Care Packages (HCP), workers' compensation, and private fee-for-service clients. Visit our Medicare & Private Fees page for more detail on funding options.
What is dysphagia and how do speech pathologists treat it?
Dysphagia is the medical term for swallowing difficulties. These can affect a person's ability to eat and drink safely. Speech pathologists assess swallowing function and identify risk factors such as aspiration. They then recommend safe swallowing strategies and texture modifications. In addition, they provide mealtime education for the client and their support network. Our team has further training through the Sheppard Dysphagia Resource. As a result, we routinely support clients in home, community, and aged care settings.
Do you offer bilingual speech pathology in Mandarin?
Yes. Ability Rehab is one of a small number of clinics in Melbourne's north-east offering this service. Specifically, bilingual speech pathology in Mandarin and English. Our bilingual speech pathologist supports culturally and linguistically diverse clients. Assessment and therapy are available in either or both languages. As a result, CALD families receive culturally responsive care.
How do I get started with speech pathology at Ability Rehab?
To get started, submit a referral through our Make a Referral page. Alternatively, call us on 0478 491 188. We'll then have an initial conversation to understand what you're looking for. From there, we confirm the funding pathway and arrange an initial assessment with the most suitable clinician. Our admin team can also assist with NDIS-related paperwork and coordination with your support network.