While Diane Bahr’s first workshop with TalkTools is approaching, we wanted to highlight her recent addition to the team.

TalkTools: What was your first encounter with Oral Placement Therapy (OPT)?

Diane:  I took courses with Sara Rosenfeld-Johnson and Lori Overland when they were first teaching workshops. I have been using TalkTools products and programs in my own treatment, as well as teaching about them in my graduate course and continuing education ever since.

TalkTools: You contributed to several publications about OPT since then. Can you tell us more about them?

Diane: Absolutely. Firstly, Sara and I wrote the first article using the terms OPD and OPT: “Treatment of Children With Speech Oral Placement Disorders (OPDs): A Paradigm Emerges.” You will also see my name on the acknowledgement page in Oral Placement Therapy for Speech Clarity and Feeding, as well as the Introduction to the 4^th edition. Sara mentions me as well in her acknowledgement page in Oral Placement Therapy (OPT) for /s/ and /z/, and Lori in A Sensory Motor Approach to Feeding. So, I have a long history of helping and supporting the work of TalkTools.

TalkTools: Why did you decide to join the TalkTools team?

Diane: Sara had invited me to join the team many years ago, but we were working through the oral sensory-motor controversy and decided to work separately until we had some resolution. We now seem to have this resolution particularly with Ray Kent’s 2015 article and all of the orofacial myofunctional research that is coming out around the globe. I decided to join the TalkTools team now because the timing is right. Both my textbook (Oral Motor Assessment and Treatment: Ages and Stages, 2001) and my parent-professional book [Nobody Ever Told Me (or my mother) That!, 2010] discuss the work of TalkTools.

TalkTools: How is your workshop going to help therapists?

Diane: My 15-hour workshop “Integrated Treatment of Feeding, Speech and Mouth Function in Pediatrics” can be taken either by therapists new to TalkTools who want an introduction or by therapists who have taken TalkTools workshops and want integration regarding the many aspects of oral sensory-motor treatment (i.e., feeding, motor speech, and mouth development/function). My course was a graduate course for many years, and I have been teaching it in continuing education since 1989. The goal of this workshop is to help all therapists integrate the wealth of oral sensory-motor information (re. feeding, motor-speech, and mouth development/function) that is currently available. I keep the workshop updated with the newest and best information I can find. Basically, I have spent 33 of my 36 year career studying and doing oral sensory-motor treatment.

TalkTools: Thank you and welcome to the TalkTools team!

Diane Bahr is a certified Speech-Language Pathologist and infant massage instructor. She has practiced Speech-Language Pathology since 1980 and has been a feeding therapist since 1983. Her experiences include teaching Graduate, Undergraduate, and Continuing Education courses; working with children and adults who exhibit a variety of speech, language, feeding, and swallowing disorders; and publishing/presenting information on oral sensory-motor function, assessment and treatment. She is the author of the textbook Oral Motor Assessment and Treatment: Ages and Stages (Allyn & Bacon, 2001). She has also written a book for parents entitled Nobody Ever Told Me (Or My Mother) That! Everything from Bottles and Breathing to Healthy Speech Development (Sensory World, 2010). Diane maintains a private practice, writes articles appearing in a variety of publications, is interviewed frequently on radio and in magazines, and is an international presenter.

She will be teaching the workshop “Integrated Treatment of Feeding, Speech and Mouth Function in Pediatrics” offered for 1.5 ASHA & AOTA approved CEUs on December 8-10, 2016 in New York, NY. Learn more and register here.

"Everyone really enjoyed the course.  All of the feedback I’ve gotten has also been positive.  Lori did a wonderful job presenting.  Chad did a great job handling everything on site.  It all went very smoothly.  And Linda was great to work with as well.  I appreciate all her help as we were getting ready for the course. We wanted to share one story with you from the weekend. One of our SLP’s was unable to make the first day because her child was sick and Chad and Linda took care of her.  She was able to watch a presentation of the first day on line at home and join everyone on the second day.  I got the following text from her around lunchtime that day “These people are wonderful!!!! They sent me great email with easy steps to follow and then called me to follow up.  I am watching the video now and will try to be ready tomorrow.  Loving the great customer service from TalkTools and SpeakAbility.”  We really appreciated all they did to help her. And we were also pleased with how good it was for our company.  Thank you for asking us to host the course."

        ~ Frances, Host in Charlotte

"The interest that the course of last Saturday generated was so high that some professionals are talking about traveling to continue with deeper training. The demand is there, the opportunity is real."

      ~ Nellie, Host in Puerto Rico

"We have already seen improvement with many of our clients using the skills Monica taught us!"

      ~ Erica, Host in San Diego

These testimonials come from organizations that hosted a TalkTools® workshop in their facility. What it means is that you host the workshop of your choice (see the list below) at your facility, TalkTools® provides all learning material and markets it to professionals in your region. Hosts can be private practices, non-profit organizations, parent groups, or other types of organizations able to meet the requirements. This is how we get to travel across the country (and more!) to train therapists of all horizons.

Here's a list of workshops available for hosting:

• A Three-Part Treatment Plan for Oral Placement Therapy (1.2 CEU)
• Feeding Therapy: A Sensory-Motor Approach (1.2 CEU)
• A Sensory Motor Approach to Apraxia of Speech and Related Motor Speech Disorders (1.2 CEU)
• Oral Placement Therapy: Assessment and Program Plan Development (1.2 CEU)
• Developing Oral Sensory Motor Skills to Support Feeding in the Down Syndrome Population (0.6 CEU)
• Rehabilitative Feeding and Speech Techniques for Teens and Adults (0.6 CEU)
• Oral Placement Therapy to Improve Speech Clarity and Feeding Skills (0.6 CEU)
• Pediatric Dysphagia: Interpreting the MBSS and Planning Treatment (0.6 CEU)
• Adult Dysphagia: Interpreting the MBSS and Planning Treatment (0.6 CEU)
• Oral Placement to Speech: Transitioning Muscle Memory into Speech Sound Production (0.6 CEU)
• Partnering Effectively with Parents: Maximize the Potential of Children Receiving Therapy (0.6 CEU)
• Solving the Puzzle of Autism: Using Tactile Therapy Techniques (0.6 CEU)
• Oral Placement Therapy: Clinical Implications for Tongue Thrust and Lisp (0.6 CEU)
• Sensory Intervention Techniques for Speech-Language Pathologists (0.6 CEU)

• TalkTools® has been known for its quality, clinically relevant Continuing Education since 1996.
• 75,000+ SLPs have attended our workshops with over 95% recommending them to their colleagues.
• Our email database has over 30,000 contacts, with the possibility to send geo-targeted campaigns.

• EDUCATE YOUR STAFF with unique learning material, appropriate CEUs, free products and other advantages.
• BE A KNOWLEDGE GENERATOR by educating your audience to cutting edge clinical strategies that can be implemented right away.
• DEVELOP PUBLIC RELATIONS with professionals and families affected by speech and feeding disabilities in your community.