Head of Service
Catherine Hamilton

SLT Team Leaders

Outpatient Lead
Anna Tucker

Inpatient/Videofluoroscopy Lead
Renee Robinson

Inpatient/FEES Lead
Helen Spear

Hearing Therapy
Helen Merry

If you have a communication problem and would like to speak to a Speech and Language Therapist, you or a family member or carer can contact us directly to discuss if a referral would be appropriate for you. If so, you can either ask your GP to refer you to Speech and Language Therapy or you can refer yourself. 

If you are having difficulty with your voice you will usually need to be seen by an ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) doctor before being referred for Speech and Language Therapy at University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust.  If you are unable to speak to us over the telephone but have access to the internet, you can email us with your queries.

As we are unable to accept swallowing referrals directly from patients or their family or carers, please contact your GP to discuss this with them.

We prioritise all of the referrals according to their urgency and endeavour to see people as quickly as possible. Once we receive your referral, you will be sent a letter acknowledging this and informing you of our current waiting times. You are welcome to contact the Speech and Language Therapy Department at any time, if you have further information that may be helpful, or to discuss any issues, questions or concerns you may have.

The Hearing Therapy service is based in the Brunel building and is available to people admitted to Southmead Hospital Bristol.

Hearing Therapy offers an assessment and management service to clients with communication difficulties due to a sudden or progressive deafness. This includes assistance in alternative communication strategies and assessment for hearing equipment.
Hearing Therapy promotes better communication between the client, their carers and the multi-disciplinary team.

Twice weekly Videofluoroscopy Swallowing Clinics are held at Southmead Hospital.

Referrals to these clinics will be agreed between the Speech & Language Therapist and your doctor.

SLTs provide assessment, diagnosis, therapy and support for people, as appropriate, as well as advice and support to families, carers and hospital staff involved with patient care.

SLTs liaise closely with the inpatient multidisciplinary teams and are involved in supporting the person’s discharge from hospital. They liaise and work with the person’s GP and community services, to support any assessment and management when they are at home. This can be in the person’s own home or residential/nursing home in the community.

SLTs assess, diagnose and manage swallowing disorders (dysphagia) associated with acquired neurological illnesses, stroke, head and neck surgery, palliative care and respiratory complications (e.g. tracheostomy).

Early intervention is desirable.

SLTs contribute to the diagnosis and management of swallowing difficulties and work as part of the multi-disciplinary team. Our aim is to identify those individuals who have the potential for aspiration (i.e. inhalation of food, fluid, saliva, and reflux) and to ensure that eating and drinking is safe and sufficient.

We will provide written information about the nature of the swallowing disorder, results of assessments, agreed oral intake and any appropriate swallowing strategies in the person’s medical notes/outpatient care plan. Further investigation via Videofluoroscopy (i.e. a video X-ray of the swallow) or endoscopy may be required).

SLTs provide acute and rehabilitation services to people who have communication problems (such as aphasia, dysarthria, dysphonia) when they are inpatients, outpatients or in the community. These may be the result of stroke, progressive neurological illness, traumatic brain injury, fluency disorders (e.g. stammering), or palliative care needs.

People who are referred to SLT may have difficulty expressing themselves clearly. Some (e.g. people who have had a stroke or those with a progressive neurological illness, such as dementia) may also have difficulty understanding what is said to them. They may not be able to read and write as well as they used to. They may not be able to tell their family how they feel or what they want to do. If people are unable to communicate using speech, they may benefit from a referral to the Bristol Communication Aids Service.

SLTs will provide information on the nature of the communication problem and will carry out thorough assessments to determine the most effective intervention for an individual. They may implement programmes of therapy if appropriate or give advice and support to carers, to ensure that people are able to communicate as effectively as possible. SLTs will work with individuals, groups, and their families or carers.

Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) covering acute and outpatient services at North Bristol NHS Trust for adults over the age of 18 years are based at Southmead and Cossham Hospitals.

Close links are maintained with SLTs working in the Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire areas. Joint working is promoted with the Adult Learning Difficulty SLTs for their clients, who may require access to specialist SLT Services (e.g. stammering, Videofluoroscopy) provided in North Bristol NHS Trust (NBT).

The Service does not accept referrals for adults with developmental speech or language disorders, congenital deafness and those with social communication difficulties related to Autistic Spectrum Disorders.

The SLT service for people with voice problems is based at University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust.

No dedicated SLT service is provided currently to Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership Trust.

The following clinics run weekly

• Videofluoroscopy swallow assessment clinics
• Stammering
• Outpatient clinics for people who have acquired swallowing difficulties or an acquired communication disorder as a result of a neurological or general medical condition

The Anaesthetic Department provides services at Southmead Hospital Bristol. 

• All theatre sessions
• Emergency surgery
• Post-operative care
• Clinical care of patients in the Intensive Care Unit and High Dependency Unit
• Analgesia and anaesthesia for obstetrics
• Chronic pain management

Following assessment, adaptive equipment is sometimes supplied to you for use at home following discharge. This may include items such as commodes, trolleys, perching stools, toileting equipment, chair & bed raisers and hoists. The equipment is issued on loan, without charge, and will either be delivered or given to you, a friend or relative to take home.

Equipment on loan is supplied by Medequip (Community Equipment), who should be contacted to request a repair or arrange collection of equipment. Please do not return any equipment to our hospitals.

Returning Equipment

If you have already benefited from equipment loaned to you that you no longer need, Medequip can arrange a free collection, to recycle and help others in need. Contact Medequip on 0330 053 3655 or email bnssg@medequip-uk.com.

Return to Medequip yourself:

Emersons Green

Unit 105
Farendell Road
Emerald Park East
Emersons Green
Bristol 
BS16 7FF

Weston-super-Mare

Unit 7 Weston Industrial Estate
Lynx Crescent 
Weston-super-Mare
BS24 9DJ
Opening Hours: 8:30am to 5:00pm Monday - Friday

For other areas please see Medequip’s website medequipuk.com

Alternative ways to access equipment

Individuals in the community who have not had recent intervention from a hospital Occupational Therapist, but require a review of existing equipment or feel some new equipment may assist them, have various options.

Contact Bristol Social Services department
Care Direct: 0117 9222700
Email: adult.care@bristol.gov.uk
www.bristol.gov.uk/housing/disabled-adaptations

Contact South Gloucestershire Social Services department
Adult Care Customer Services: 01454 868007
Email: csodesk@southglos.gov.uk
www.southglos.gov.uk/health-and-social-care/care-for-adults

Contact North Somerset Social Services department
Care Connect: 01275 888801
Email: care.connect@n-somerset.gov.uk
 

Contact the Red Cross to enquire about hiring equipment
Telephone: 0117 3012606
www.redcross.org.uk
Bradbury House
Caxton Business Park
83 Tower Road North
Warmley
Bristol BS30 8XP

Contact WE Care & Repair
Telephone: 0300 3230700
Email: info@wecr.org.uk

http://www.wecr.org.uk/

Wheelchairs

If a hospital inpatient requires a wheelchair for long term use (over 6 months) they will be referred to the Bristol Centre for Enablement for assessment (there are specific criteria that have to be met)

If you need a wheelchair for short term use (under 6 months), hospital and community patients will normally be directed to the Red Cross (contact number above). You can also purchase or hire wheelchairs from many local mobility shops.

If you are registered with a GP in Bristol, South Gloucestershire, North Somerset or BANES and feel you need a long term wheelchair but are not a hospital inpatient, please ask your GP to refer you to the Bristol Centre for Enablement Wheelchair and Special Seating Service.