Anissa – I had originally planned to attend ASHA Connect this year but due to some scheduling issues, I had to change my plans. HOWEVER, the ASHA Committee on Leadership Cultivation will have a poster at on Saturday July 21st from 5:30 – 6:30 pm (all posters will be at that time). I have attached the info about this poster. I hope that you will be able to go by and see the poster and visit with Bob, Gabrielle and Nancy from our committee.
Donna
Donna Fisher Smiley, Ph.D., CCC-A
Audiology Supervisor/Audiologist
Arkansas Children's Hospital
1 Children's Way ● Slot 113 ● Little Rock, AR 72202
(501) 680-2718 direct ● (501) 364-6881 fax
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Original Message------
I'm wondering if anyone in the Leadership forum is headed to ASHA Connect in Baltimore this month? I feel as if I'm in need of some mentoring. I have professional attention deficit disorder and need some mentoring to get focused and finished with what I've started. I would love the honest guidance of some professionals who have been there. I'm excited that this community has developed and that I have finally found and accessed it. I have been lurking in the shadows a bit reading posts and not visibly participating yet. :) I apologize. I've been reading posts and trying to keep up with my current workload as well.
I am an enthusiastic speech-language pathologist with 16 years of experience with both adults and children in a variety of settings, including private practice, home health, schools, early intervention programs, university clinics, outpatient multidisciplinary clinics, acute care, regional cleft palate teams, and even NIH-funded research programs. Within these settings, I have counseled patients and their families, collaborated with other medical professionals or educators, and evaluated and treated a variety of communication and swallowing disorders. As a private practitioner, I recruited therapists, negotiated contracts, worked closely with a billing company, and served as my current employer's only successful speech therapy competition until I closed my practice doors. My practice also served as an ASHA certified continuing education provider, through which I planned and offered 3-4 CE courses a year to a typical attendance of 50-75 clinicians. My field experiences range from academic work with clinical research, teaching, and writing to direct patient care, both as a clinician and a manager of my own private practice.
Professionally, I have been all over the map, including a doctoral program which was left unfinished to put my ex-husband through law school. I'm not certain I'd be allowed to finish the PhD at this point, but all of my coursework was completed at UTK. Life has a way of taking us down alternative roads despite our best laid plans. I have recently started a online Master of Healthcare Administration program, where I am acquiring the skills to help me make the transition from clinician into leadership in our changing healthcare landscape, whether within my company or another. The clinical realm, as opposed to research, seems to be my forte, though I have some regrets at not finishing that PhD now. I am much older (45), wiser, and have a daughter now to consider as I continue to develop this unique path. I've applied to the mentorship program, hoping to find someone who might take on a hot mess like me. :) (My sense of humor thankfully remains intact!) I have truly enjoyed reading your posts and hope that you will continue sharing your insights with those of us who need it. I don't think I'll ever be too old to need mentored. There is always something new to learn. I am a constant work in progress.
Thanks for your time and attention!
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Anissa Weese
Abingdon, VA
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