What Makes Us Unique
The Gallaudet University Hearing and Speech Center (GUHSC) serves culturally and linguistically diverse individuals of the Gallaudet Community and Washington DC Metropolitan Area.
We provide accessible client-centered care using evidence-based practice while also giving our Doctoral Audiology (AuD) and Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) graduate students supervised, hands-on training. Our goal is to provide thoughtful, individualized audiology, speech, and language services to clients of all ages while providing training to the next generation of experts in the field.
Academics, Training, and Client Care | All-in-One
As a university training program rooted in academic rigor, our faculty, staff, and students are knowledgeable about current industry best practices and state of the science techniques in hearing and speech health care. Consequently, clients experience the newest therapy techniques and approaches which are supported by evidence-based research practices. By training a new generation of hearing and speech clinicians, the GUHSC staff seeks to ensure that excellent care and professionalism are instilled into the future experts in the fields of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology. By combining an academic, hands-on training and a client-centric approach, the therapy plans and individual procedures are very successful in achieving the short-term and long-term goals for students and clients alike.
Rather than rushing a client through the hearing health care process, we look at the individual holistically to thoroughly understand each person’s unique situation. Clients have expressed that they enjoy the education element of the Hearing & Speech Center, because we take our time with explanations and descriptions, which benefits both students and clients.
Speech and Language Pathology graduating class of 2018
Culturally Diverse | Bilingual Environment
As a center of academia, Gallaudet University is a diverse community of bilingual students, faculty, and staff representing various cultural backgrounds. Our unique, bilingual environment is especially sought after for its hearing and speech care, as we provide many options to people from all over the world. According to one member of our team: “As a clinician, I think what makes it special are the relationships I can develop with the families of my clients. As a clinical educator, the whole shaping of the next generation is pretty cool too.” Another perspective from an onsite audiologist was: “Gallaudet provides a unique perspective on hearing loss and Deafness. Our clientele is culturally and linguistically diverse, and our audiologists are skilled at providing services in both spoken English and American Sign Language. We respect that there are many ways to be d/Deaf** or hard of hearing.”
** Note: deaf refers to someone who is categorized as being audiologically deaf, while Deaf refers to someone whose preferred mode of communication is American Sign Language and considers him or herself to be part of the Deaf community.
People, First and Foremost
As a not-for-profit clinical and educational environment, GUHSC provides client-centered care that is not profit-driven and provides students with hands-on clinical experience as part of their education. In this way, we are both client- and student-centered, with a primary focus on benefiting people and enhancing lives.
We understand the process of addressing hearing and speech conditions is stressful on its own, so we offer a no-pressure environment. We promote two-way communication, truthful and honest evaluations, and recommendations based only on client needs and goals. Our clinicians and students are compassionate, knowledgeable, and kind.
We are honored that our clients choose us, giving us the opportunity to interact with them for all of their hearing and speech needs. By working with clinicians in a training institution, client services are held to a high standard of evidence-based practice. Our services are informed by the latest research and best practices, at the forefront of academia, ensuring that our clients will always receive the best care possible. While we are happy to see our students graduate and flourish on their own, we have long-term staff with low turnover, ensuring continuity of care with our clients.
