Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexandra Saa.
Hi Alexandra, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My journey with speech language pathology has not been linear and originates for my passion of learning neuroscience in my AP psychology class and studying classical literature while enrolled in the Latin academy at Northeast High School. Since a young age, I have been drawn by the charisma and joy of individuals with disabilities; including my own cousin whom has autism. The summer before I was scheduled to go to Florida Atlantic University, my plan was to pursue International Affairs as my major, but one day while visiting my uncle who’s son has autism, his nurse aide told me about how she wished she had pursued either physical therapy or speech therapy to help more people with their rehabilitation. However, her lack of not speaking English and limited financial resources was what shattered her dream from coming to fruition. I was captivated by our conversation and researched the two professions; in the end I was impressed about how versatile a career in speech language pathology might be and decided to switch my major to that. I decided to transfer to Broward College and pursue all the prerequisite courses and was accepted to Florida State University for my Bachelors in Communication Science and Disorders. Fast forward two years later, unlike most of my peers that were accepted into a graduate program after graduation, I was not and was completely distraught. However, I used that gap year to work as a “speech therapist assistant” (SLP-A) for a pediatric company. Thankfully, this experience allowed me to refine my knowledge of the field and to create a comprehensive application for graduate school. I was finally accepted in 2016 to Carlos Albizu University and since my graduation in 2019, I have had the pleasure of working in diverse settings including pediatric clinics, skilled nursing facilities, home health, acute care and long term acute care units in four hospitals. In 2022, I took a leap of faith and accepted a travel speech therapy opportunity to work in California for a year before moving back to Florida! Now, with all this knowledge and perspective in health care, I have decided to launch my home health, private practice for both adults and children. In the meantime, I continue to work at a hospital and skilled nursing facility!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
One of the obstacles for a private practice is getting approved from different insurance companies, applying to Medicaid, Medicare and making sure that Medicare claims are filed correctly to get reimbursement on time.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My private practice is called Eclipse Speech Therapy LLC, and its mission is to “illuminate your rehabilitation journey” in the comfort of a patient’s home or meet them at a community center like the library or a preschool. As a native English and Spanish speaker, the population I serve includes adults and children with an array of diagnosis. For example, swallowing therapy for Head and Neck cancer patients, cognitive therapy for patients with traumatic brain injury, stroke survivors or Alzheimers disease, voice therapy for individuals with Parkinson’s disease, and speech therapy to assist with articulation disorders and language delays for typical and neurodivergent children (autism spectrum disorders).
What are your plans for the future?
In the next five years, I plan to open up a clinic and have employees that are bilingual or trilingual, become certified in fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES), host educational seminars both in person and remotely to educate minority families about the importance of speech therapy for their children, and facilitate holistic events to include sound bowl healing mixed with pilates for patients that have neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease and Guillain-Barré syndrome to strengthen their mindset and improve their physical form to a functional level.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.eclipsespeechtherapy.com
- Instagram: @eclipsespeechtherapy.com
Image Credits
My professional pictures were taken by my friend; Bianca Astralaga! https://biancaastralaga.com
