Sandy
Sandy holds a bachelor and a Master’s degree in Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) from the Saint-Joseph University of Beirut, Lebanon (USJ) with over 6 years of experience in working with children, adolescents, and young adults with various communication, speech, language, fluency, and/or cognitive disorders. She has particularly gained vast experience in autism spectrum disorders and social communication disorders as well as Parental Coaching.
Throughout her career, Sandy has had the opportunity to work in different contexts and settings which include special institutions, mainstream schools, and clinical practice. Along with to being a speech and language therapist, Sandy is an instructor in the department of Speech and Language Pathology at the IUL University in Lebanon where she virtually teaches a course in Autism and Social Communication Disorders. She aims to continue her education by applying for her doctorate program (PhD) in fields that combine the study of Speech and Language and Autism.
Sandy attributes her professional development to her educational experience, as her graduate program played a pivotal role in preparing her for this position, particularly while completing her thesis paper, in which she sought to create, establish and lead a controlled parent-driven evaluation and intervention program for Lebanese children with autism with the aim of improving practices and ensuring faster effective outcomes. Her efforts were rewarded as her paper was nominated for publishing in a scientific journal.
Her career also handed her with tasks of leading educational and counselling training sessions for parents on techniques and strategies that directly promote communication and language with their children and enhance quality of life. She also took part in co-coordinating and co-executing the “Inclusion of Students with Moderate to Severe Disabilities” project in 2018 at her past work during which she was entrusted with leading and managing the setup of a SNOEZELEN multisensory room for all students with different needs.
Sandy takes joy in having been able to co-found her own private practice in Lebanon with the mission was to raise awareness, promote a supportive environment, and implement holistic and effective approaches with differently-abled individuals.
Clinical Trainings / Certifications Include:
- TED Therapy (The Exchange and Development Therapy)
- Parental Coaching
- TEACCH
- PECS
- Makaton
- SNOEZELEN Approach
- Fluency Shaping and Stuttering Modifications techniques for individuals with Fluency Disorders.
- Feeding protocol for children with Sensory Processing difficulties/challenges.
- Social and Vocational Skills
- Teletherapy
- Childhood apraxia of speech (CAS)
Languages:
- Arabic-English-French