Chairman, Communication Disorders............................................................................Dr. Paul Hoffman
Director of Clinical Services.........................................................................................Dr. Norma C. Travis
Clinic Supervisors
            Audiology........................................................................................................Ms. Wendy Jumonville
                           .........................................................................................................Ms. Michelle Smith
            Speech Pathology.............................................................................................Ms. Jeanne Fisher
                                      ..............................................................................................Ms. Karola Gray
                                      ..............................................................................................Dr. Amelia I. Hudson
                                      ..............................................................................................Ms. Elise Kaufman
                                      ..............................................................................................Ms. Laura Teague
                                      ..............................................................................................Dr. Norma Travis
Department Secretary...................................................................................................Ms. Raven Johnson
Clinic Secretary............................................................................................................Ms. Randie DeJohn

PHILOSOPHY
ADMINISTRATIVE AND CLINICAL STAFF
        Director of Clinical Services
        The Clinic Committee
        Supervisors of Clinical Programs
        Clinic Secretary
STUDENT CLINICIANS
        Instructions for Clinical Practica Assignments
        Practicum Appeal Process
        Responsibilities
        Practicum Credit and Clock Hours
        Procedures for Minimal Performance
        Maintenance of Clinical Materials and Equipment
        Unclaimed Personal Materials/Equipment
        Procedure for Viewing Client Video Tapes
ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES
        Permanent CLinic File
        Clinic Work Folder
        Time Card
        Case Summaries
        Lesson Plans
        Request for Continued Therapy
PROFESSIONAL ETHICS AND RESPONSIBILITY
        Procedures for Unprofessional Conduct
CLIENT RESPONSIBILITIES
ADMINISTRATIVE AND CLINICAL PROCEDURES FOR OFF-CAMPUS CLINICAL PRACTICUM
POLICY REGARDING CLOCK HOURS FROM A SALARIED POSITION
        Audiology
        Speech-Language Pathology
INSTRUCTIONS FOR OFF-CAMPUS ASSIGNMENTS
        Off-campus Clinical Practicum Appeal Process
        Reasons for Appeal
        Appeal Procedure
APPROVED OFF-CAMPUS PRACTICA SITES (3/97)
 

The Louisiana State University Speech and Hearing Clinic has three objectives:

1.  Professional training at the bachelors, masters, and doctoral levels for students pursuing degrees in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders with concentration in speech pathology and/or audiology;
2.  Research regarding the nature, causes and remediation of disorders of speech, language and hearing; and
3.  Providing service to the community in the form of evaluation and remediation of individuals having communicative disorders and inservice training and consultation for professionals and agencies serving those having communicative disorders.

Director of Clinical Services

The Clinic Director is a member of the faculty and carries full authority and responsibility regarding all matters pertaining to clinical function and training.  The Director is directly responsible to the Chair of the department.  For students in training in the Clinic, the Clinic Director is the final authority in all matters of clinical procedures.  The Clinic Director is responsible for the assignment of students to satellite clinics, the scheduling of clients for diagnosis and/or therapy, the keeping of current statistics regarding the clients seen, the keeping and summarization at the end of the semester of student clock hours according to the ASHA categories (G-t-103), and the sending of reports on clients to other agencies or professionals.

The Clinic Committee

The Clinic Committee is composed of the Clinic Director and five faculty members (3 clinical faculty, 2 academic faculty) appointed by the department Chair.  The Clinic Committee is responsible for making clinic policy, structuring the clinic budget, and hearing student clinic-related appeals.

Supervisors of Clinical Programs

The major responsibility of Clinic Supervisors is the training, observation, and evaluation of student clinicians.  Clinic supervisors are responsible for all matters of clinical procedures, such as assisting Clinic Director in the scheduling of students and clients, interviewing and counseling parents, evaluations, and planning and carrying out therapy.

ASHA mandates that Student Clinicians be directly supervised during at least 25 percent of the therapy sessions they conduct.  Our general procedure is to provide 33 percent, or an hour per week per Student Clinician of supervisory time.  Diagnostic sessions, both speech-language and audiological, are ASHA mandated to be directly supervised at least 50% of the contact time.

Mid-semester and final conferences are held with each student, at which time the student is informed of his/her current ratings on the appropriate clinician rating form (G-t-130 Competency-Based Objectives for Student Clinicians; H-t-20 Diagnostic Audiology Practicum Evaluation) and his/her current grade.  Additional student conferences can be requested by the student or Clinic Supervisor.  (Specific times during the week are set aside by each supervisor for conferences and are posted where students can sign for them.)

Finally, Clinic Supervisors are responsible for the distribution, collection, and care of clinical materials (tape recorders, tests, etc.) and clinical forms used by the students they supervise.  All Clinic Supervisors are directly responsible to the Clinic Director.

Clinic Secretary

The Clinic Secretary is responsible for client intake, maintaining all clinical records and permanent files, and for other administrative duties assigned by the Chairman of the Department and the Director.

The Clinic Secretary is also responsible for the checkout and return of tests and materials kept in room 144A, "the diagnostic closet" and test protocols kept in a filing cabinet in the secretary's office.
 

Instructions for Clinical Practica Assignments

The purpose of clinic practica  is to provide the students in speech-language pathology and audiology with a wide range of clinical experiences under the supervision of ASHA certified professionals.  The clinical experience enables students to translate information that is presented theoretically in didactic courses into applied practice within clinical course work.  For many individuals, the clinical practica received at the university level is the only opportunity to work in conjunction with experienced clinicians.  Once a working professional, the individual is essentially "on his/her own" in making clinical judgments concerning evaluation and treatment of communication disorders.

ASHA placed minimum standards on the amount of clinical practica that a student must complete in order to practice professionally.  Those standards assure that a student has at least one experience with each of a variety of clinical cases, such as language, articulation, voice, audiological assessment and so forth.  Programs that are strong clinically assure that students have opportunities to exceed these minimum standards.  Since each case is unique and many differences exist between any two "articulation disorders" or "hearing impairments," it is important that students see more than one client manifesting any etiology during their training program.

The following policies and procedures are designed to provide for adequate clinical opportunities so that our students graduate with superior clinical training.

1.  Students enroll in clinical practicum each semester that they are involved in a supervised clinical experience.  Students are responsible for knowing what type of hours they need to fulfill their ASHA requirements.  Students are responsible for indicating the age group, etiology, communication disorder and so forth that they need more experience with, whether or not they technically need the hours for ASHA.  Students are responsible for seeking a variety of experiences in their interest area(s).

In consideration of all of these needs, students should designate on the Practicum Request form the types of hours that they are seeking to meet their own clinical goals (see instructions for requesting clinical practicum, including eligibility requirements, priority status and so forth).  This form is a REQUEST for a clinical experience, not an assurance that the type of experience requested will in fact be available.  Therefore, it is wise to list first, second and third preference, indicating such.

2.  When students enroll for 1-4 credit hours of clinical practicum, the department will assure that they receive at least one clinical assignment that will provide an appropriate clinical experience.  This MAY or MAY NOT be the type of clinical case requested by the student (other students closer to graduating may also need those hours and will be assigned to cases ahead of a student with fewer hours).

Many semesters it will be possible to provide more than one clinical experience for this practicum credit during the semester that the student is enrolled.  Thus, for one clinical practicum, the student may be assigned both a voice and language client.  Decisions on clinical assignments will depend on the number of students enrolled in practicum, the number and types of clients available, the amount of supervisory time available, clinical rooms available, etc.  Generally, a range of from three-to-nine clock hours per week can be expected when a student enrolls for one clinical practicum.

3.  Initial clinical experiences will generally be obtained under the supervision of LSU faculty.  However, once a student has demonstrated clinical competence in basic assessment, treatment, report writing and other necessary skills, the student is eligible for off-campus placements.  These opportunities enable students to gain experiences in the community at settings such as hospitals, public schools, rehabilitation centers, early intervention centers, multi disciplinary team evaluation programs, programs for the hearing impaired, and so forth.  The student should be aware of these options (see Instructions for off-campus assignments) and initiate requests to participate in such off-campus training when it is available.  In some settings, it is possible to participate for portions of a semester -- for example, a student might participate in on-campus diagnostic evaluation for six weeks.  Once demonstrating competence in this LSU supervised setting, the student can be assigned to complete the semester in an off-campus setting.  The off-campus settings provide experiences that cannot be duplicated at LSU.  Students are wise to participate in these experiences; they also must serve as outstanding representatives of LSU when they are placed in these settings.

4.  The LSU Speech and Hearing Clinic is the facility at which student clinicians work with "real" clients under the supervision of an ASHA certified faculty member.  Although clients are seen by students-in-training, the services provided are to be of the best quality.

To this end, it is the policy of the program that the student clinician must have satisfactorily completed the prerequisite course work for the case-type requested.  For example, COMD 4383 (Basic Fluency Disorders) must precede a fluency practicum; COMD 7387 (Aphasia in Adults) must precede practicum with an aphasic client.

Reason for Appeal:
If a student does not meet the prerequisites for a particular practicum but requests such assignment, an appeal can be made to the Clinic Committee.  Such an appeal should be based on a  sound educational reason.

The Appeal Process:
A letter stating what is being appealed and the reason/justification for the appeal must be submitted to the Clinic Committee via the committee's chairperson.  The letter must be accompanied by a statement of approval or disapproval of the appeal written and signed by the student's academic advisor.

The written appeal must be submitted at least one week before the deadline for submission of Practica Requests for the following semester, the semester for which the appeal is sought.

Students are assigned to the clinic to receive training and experience in interviewing, evaluating, counseling, and providing therapy.  Student practicum is assigned according to the case load of the clinic and the needs of the Student Clinician.

The Student Clinician is expected to translate and integrate his academic knowledge with clinical skills and procedures.  The Clinic Supervisors may give demonstrations, guide student clinical performance through observations and conferences, and assist him/her in other ways to achieve clinical competence.

The Student Clinician is directly responsible to his/her Clinic Supervisor(s).  It is hoped that the Student Clinician will not hesitate to use the supervisory staff or other faculty members in his/her quest for knowledge and clinical competence.  It is important, however, to remember that final decisions regarding clinical practice with a specific client and student practicum grades lie with the assigned Supervisor.

Practicum Credit and Clock Hours

Students are expected to complete practica courses satisfactorily in order to receive University credit and clinical clock hours ("C" or better).  Students who voluntarily do not complete a practicum sequence will not be credited with any clock hours for that particular practicum.

A date on which Clinical Supervisors give grades to the Clinic Director will be set and printed on the Clinic Calendar.  Any student who has not finalized satisfactorily and turned in to the supervisor ALL clinical work for that practicum by the grade deadline will automatically receive a grade of "F" for that practicum regardless of the probable grade discussed in the final evaluative conference except under extenuating circumstances approved by the supervisor.

Procedure to Be Followed For Students Displaying Marginal Clinical Performance

Step 1 --  If performance is unsatisfactory after a reasonable time period, the supervisor meets with the clinician to discuss in detail the area(s) of weakness and possible solutions.  The supervisor will designate a date by which performance must be improved.  Supervisor advises clinician, in writing, of consequences if behavior has not improved by the designated date.

Step 2 --  If satisfactory performance has not been demonstrated by the designated date, the clinician and supervisor meet with the clinic director.  The clinician is advised that he/she is on probation.  The clinician, supervisor, and clinic director formulate, in writing, a contract to include specific objectives and deadline for their accomplishment.  The contract will specify what will be done, by what date, and the consequences if not accomplished.

Possible intervention strategies might include one or more of the following:

1.  observation of other clinicians who are performing well,
2.  literature assignments, possibly including client files,
3.  video-taping therapy sessions and analyzing them with supervisor,
4.  role-playing with supervisor,
5.  demonstration by one or more supervisors.

Step 4 --  On readmittance to the practicum, the clinician is automatically placed on probation, is assigned to a different supervisor, and must earn a passing grade by mid-term to be allowed to continue in the practicum.
 

Maintenance of Clinical Materials and Equipment

Tests and certain equipment are kept locked in room 144A.  Any equipment/tests used should be signed out appropriately just before use and returned immediately after the therapy/diagnostic session so that others have equal access to such materials.

Some toys available for use are kept in room 129.  While these do not need to be signed out, it is important that they, too, are taken just before use and returned to the proper place immediately after use so that others have access to them.

Unclaimed Personal Materials/Equipment

A date to signify the deadline for the removal of all personal materials/equipment from the clinic area will be given on each semester's Clinic Calendar.  Any materials/equipment remaining after the deadline will become the property of the LSU Speech and Hearing Clinic.

Procedures for Viewing Client Video Tapes

TV's and VCR's are available in the Clinicians' Workroom (129) for viewing and analyzing taped therapy and diagnostic sessions.  Tapes of clients are not to be taken out of the clinic.  Any viewing of tapes other than in the designated area will be a breach of client confidentiality and will be subject to penalty.
 

Usually clients telephone or write to the Speech and Hearing Clinic requesting information and/or appointments.  It is the Clinic Secretary's responsibility to gather all initial vital information, such as name of client, names of parents, address, birth date, school, referral source, and statement of problem.  This information is then given to the Clinic Director or appropriate supervisor in charge of scheduling screenings or diagnostics.

When the client is screened or diagnosed, an Authorization for Release of Clinic Information (G-d-92) is completed.  After the screening/diagnosis, a Request for Therapy form (G-d-93) is filled out if therapy at LSU is recommended.  The request form is given to the supervisor responsible for the session.

If it is recommended that a client who is receiving therapy is to continue, at the end of the semester a Request for Continued Therapy form (G-t-105) is completely and accurately filled out and given to the supervisor at the time of the Final Evaluative Conference.

Permanent Clinic File

The Permanent Clinic File on each client currently enrolled in therapy or pending diagnosis is kept in the two-drawer "working" file cabinet in the Clinic Secretary's office.  These Permanent Clinic Files contain initial evaluations, copies of tests, final summaries of therapy, correspondence, and records of telephone contacts related to the client.  Lesson plans and other clinical materials are to be filed in the Clinic Work Folder. The Permanent Clinic File can be checked out from the Clinic Secretary and reviewed in the Clinic Workroom only.  Under NO circumstances are these folders or any information from them to leave the Clinic.

Clinic Work Folder

Initial Case Summaries, lesson plans, and other information pertinent to the actual working with the client are to be filed in the Clinic Work Folder.  A file cabinet is maintained in the workroom where these folders MUST be kept.  These folders are not to leave the Clinic.  At the end of each semester, those materials in the Clinic Work Folders which are not placed in the Permanent Clinic File must be destroyed.  Non-identifiable materials the student clinician may wish to keep in his/her own files can be arranged through the Clinic Supervisor.

Time Card

The time card of Clinical Experience Record (G-t-102) is the Student Clinician's responsibility.  Information should be entered after each session.  In order for clinical hours to be transferred to the Supervised Clinical Experience form (G-t-103) at the end of eh semester, the time cards must be signed weekly.  Any uninitialed hours will not be counted.

Case Summaries

Initial Case Summaries (G-t-106) are to be submitted to the Clinical Supervisors at their instructions.  A Final Case Summary (G-t-107) of therapy will be completed at the close of each semester regardless of the client's intentions to resume therapy in the following semester.  On the dates specified, Final Summaries are to be turned in to the Clinical Supervisor(s), who will sign and submit them to the Clinic Secretary for placement in the Permanent Clinic File.

Lesson Plans

Lesson plans (e.g., A-t-1.2, G-t-111) are to be done at the discretion of the Clinic Supervisor.

Request for Continued Therapy

Request for Continued Therapy forms (G-t-105) are to be completed by the Clinician with the Client, Parent, or Surrogate at the end of each semester.  These forms are to be given to the Clinic Supervisor at the time of the Final Evaluative Conference.  The forms should be filled out completely and accurately.  Future scheduling is done based on this information.
 

Everyone involved in any aspect of clinical practice must be thoroughly acquainted with the CODE OF ETHICS of the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association (G-c-201).  In addition, student clinicians must refrain from the following:

1.  Violating the client's confidentiality by revealing any information obtained from or about him without his express written permission (G-d-92).  This includes giving reports to outside agencies or professionals.  It also includes discussing clients outside of Room 129 or Clinic Supervisors' offices, removing case folders or their contents from the clinic, keeping identifiable therapy files outside clinic, viewing client video tapes outside the clinic, or in other ways violating the client's confidentiality.

2.  Writing or saying things which may discredit professional colleagues or members of allied professions.

3.  Questioning the diagnosis of a client except with the appropriate Clinic Supervisor.  Doubts or disagreements should never be expressed to the client or other lay persons.

4.  Using diagnostic or therapeutic techniques for which the Student Clinician has not received adequate training and supervision and supervisory approval.

5.  Significantly modifying clinical techniques, goals, or client management without the approval of the Clinic Supervisor.

6.  Dealing with clients whose medical status, if pertinent to his therapy, has not been clarified by a physician, e.g., phonatory, neurological, hearing and other organic disorders.

7.  Being absent from any scheduled therapy session without prior notification to and approval by the Clinic Supervisor.  It is the student's responsibility to find a qualified substitute Student Clinician and to provide him/her with a lesson plan.

All unexcused absences will be reported to the Clinic Director.  The penalty for the first unexcused absence will be loss of all previously earned clinical hours with that client for that semester.  The second unexcused absence will result in loss of all previously earned clinical hours for that semester and removal from all clinical duties for that semester.

8.  Being unduly late to scheduled therapy sessions.  Three such occurrences shall be treated as one unexcused absence.

9.  Addressing clinical staff and/or Student Clinicians by their given names rather than their appropriate title (Dr., Mr., Mrs., Miss or Ms.) during clinical activities.

10.  Dressing in attire considered by the Clinic Supervisor as unprofessional.

11.  Providing speech, language, or hearing therapy unless this therapy is given under competent supervision and as a part of the training program.  A student cannot help friends, work with a neighbor's child, etc.  It will not, however, be considered unethical for one who possesses the ASHA Certificate of Clinical Competence (G-c-200) and/or an Active License from the Louisiana Board of Examiners in Speech Pathology and Audiology (G-c-202) to engage in part-time speech or hearing therapy which is not part of the training program, provided that the director of the training program gives prior approval.

12.  Engaging in practices or actions that might have undesirable effects on the client, other professionals or students, or the training program.

Procedure to be followed for students displaying unprofessional behavior

The following procedure will be applied:

Step 1 --  Clinician meets with supervisor to discuss violation in specific terms.  Supervisor advises clinician, in writing, of consequences should behavior(s) continue.  Possible consequences are given in the Handbook and would be dictated by the offense.  For example, if the Clinician is dressed inappropriately, the Supervisor could make other arrangements for the client that day, meet with the Clinician to explain the reason for the loss of one day's therapy, and discuss the consequences of recurring behavior.

Step 2 --  If the behavior recurs, the clinician meets with Supervisor and Clinic Director.  Clinician is placed on probation and advised, in writing, of consequences should the behavior(s) recur.

Step 3 --  If the behavior recurs, the clinician meets with the supervisor and the clinic director and is told to drop the practicum.  If the University's date for dropping classes is past, the clinician receives an "F" for that practicum.  The client is reassigned and all clock hours for that practicum are lost.  The practicum must be retaken.

Since the LSU Speech and Hearing Clinic's primary objective is providing training for Student Clinicians, clients must attend therapy regularly and on time.  Opening and closing dates of clinic are established each semester so that a Student Clinician can accumulate approximately 35 clock hours for 2 credit hours of Speech 4683, 4684, 4685, 7683, 7684, 7685 in which he/she enrolls.  A letter will be distributed to parents the first day of therapy explaining these things (G-t-109).  Clients' absences will make it impossible for the Student Clinician to accumulate the necessary clock hours.  Therefore, the LSU Speech and Hearing Clinic has established rules concerning client absences.  Only absences because of illness will be considered excused.  It is the parent's (client's) responsibility to notify the clinic of the client's illness.  All clients missing more than 3 sessions will be reviewed by the clinic staff with regard to dismissal.  Any other absence (including non-notification of the clinic in the case of illness) will be considered unexcused.  One unexcused absence will be permitted each semester.  When the second unexcused absence occurs, the Clinic Supervisor will notify the parent (client) that the client is dropped from therapy.  Three unduly late arrivals will be considered as one unexcused absence.  It is the Student Clinician's responsibility to notify the clinic Supervisor concerning client absences or lateness.
 

The Clinic Director will be responsible for the coordination of all off-campus practicum.  The ASHA certified clinician in each facility will be directly responsible for supervision of Student Clinicians assigned there.  All of the policies and procedures previously stated in this Clinic Handbook will apply to off-campus clinical experience.  Students should familiarize themselves with the rules, procedures, and staff of the specific facilities at which they are working or observing.
 

Audiology:
With approval of the Clinic Committee, a second year audiology graduate student who has completed two regular semesters (Fall, Spring) of practica in the LSU Clinic and who holds a salaried position may count a maximum of 50 appropriately supervised clock hours from that setting/site with a maximum of 30% (25 hours) of other audiological assessment procedures, and a maximum of 30% (7 hours) of aural habilitation/rehabilitation.

Speech-Language Pathology:
With approval of the Clinic Committee, a second year speech-language who has completed two regular semesters (Fall, Spring) of practica in the LSU Clinic and who holds a salaried position may count a maximum of 50 appropriately supervised clock hours from that setting/site with no more than 30% (7 hours) of the required clock hours in any one ASHA category being counted.  For example, of the 20 hours of child language treatment required, that salaried student may count up to 7 hours in that category.
 

"At least 50 supervised clock hours must be completed in each of three types of clinical setting."  (ASHA Standards, 1993).  One of these settings is the LSU Speech & Hearing Clinic.  Therefore, practicum must be obtained at two off-campus settings in order to meet ASHA requirements for certification.  There are a variety of settings, clinical case loads, types of experiences, age levels and so forth available at the different sites.

When requesting an off-campus practicum experience, the student must follow the procedure below.

1.  The student must initiate a request for an off-campus experience by submitting a PRACTICUM REQUEST FORM during preregistration.

a.  Examine the available off-campus practicum experiences.

b.  Obtain approval signature for the request from the student's advisor and LSU liaison for the site.

c.  Complete a Practicum Request Form with information designating the practicum experience and time desired.  This is a REQUEST; it does not assure that the student will be assigned the practicum experience.  These decisions are based upon the number of students making similar requests, sites available, LSU liaison faculty available and so forth.

d.  Submit the completed and approved request to the Clinic Director during the advising period preceding registration.  (A deadline date will be posted.)

a.  The student must have a GPA of B or higher to be assigned to an off-campus site.

b.  The student must have completed the prerequisite course work designated for the off-campus practicum.

c.  The student must have completed and demonstrated competence with a similar clinical caseload under the supervision of LSU supervisors.  For example, the student must have participated in diagnostics before becoming eligible for Pupil Appraisal in the schools.  A STUDENT MAY CONDUCT PART OF A SEMESTER AT LSU, AND COMPLETE THE SEMESTER AT AN OFF-CAMPUS PRACTICUM SITE.  The student is eligible only after demonstrating an acceptable level of clinical competence and independence within the LSU practicum.  These decisions will be made on an individual basis.

d.  The student must assure that his/her schedule allows for sufficient time to participate in the off-campus practicum.  Generally, these practica require a commitment of at approximately 20 hours per week.  Schedules are arranged with the off-site supervisor, the Student Clinician, and the LSU liaison.  Students are expected to follow the off-sites' calendar/holiday schedules.

e.  The student must meet the requirement of the specific off-site.  For example, hospitals and rehabilitation facilities may require CPR certification, immunizations, TB test.

f.   The student must have transportation to the off-campus site.

g.  The student must be prepared to serve as an outstanding representative of LSU.

Off-campus Clinical Practicum Appeal Process

The off-campus clinical experience, in addition to being required to meet ASHA's certification standards, should be one in which the Student Clinician has opportunity to apply learned skills and professional conduct in a "real world" environment.  It is difficult for the inexperienced clinician to learn basic skills in such settings; rather, the off-campus experiences are ones in which the Student Clinician's skills are refined and enhanced.

It is expected that the Student Clinician's conduct and work be a positive reflection of our program and the profession.  In order to achieve this goal, to allow the clinician to benefit maximally from the off-campus experience, and to have the off-campus experience be a rewarding and pleasant one, certain policies have been established:

1.  The student ust have a GPA of B or higher.

2.  The student must have completed the prerequisite course work designated for that off-campus practicum.

3.  The student must have completed and demonstrated competence with a similar clinical caseload under the supervision of LSU supervisors...  The student is eligible only after demonstrating an acceptable level of clinical competence and independence with the LSU practicum.  These decisions will be made on an individual basis.

If a student does not meet the prerequisites for off-campus practicum as stated above but requests such assignment, an appeal can be made to the Clinic Committee.  Such an appeal should be based on a sound educational reason.  The student should also be aware that the off-campus supervisor has the right to refuse an inexperienced student.

The Appeal Procedure

A letter stating what is being appealed and the reason/justification for the appeal must be submitted to the Clinic Committee via the committee's chairperson.  The letter must be accompanied by a statement of approval or disapproval of the appeal, written and signed by the student's academic advisor.

The written appeal must be submitted at least one week before the deadline for submission of Practica Requests for the following semester, the semester for which the appeal is sought.

If the student is not satisfied with the decision of the Clinic Committee, he/she may appeal to the Chair of the Department.  A letter requesting a meeting of the Department Chair, the Chair of the Clinic Committee, and the student should be submitted to the Department Chair within one week of the receipt of the Clinic Committee's decision.  The letter should clearly state the purpose of the meeting.
 

RE:  Off-Site Practica Eligibility

Off-site placement MUST BE APPROVED (signed on the Practicum Request Form) during preregistration period by the LSU liaison faculty person who reviews course work & practicum prerequisites.

APPROPRIATE COURSE WORK in the various disorders and in assessment/diagnosis must be completed before off-site placement.

Except in special cases, PRACTICUM EXPERIENCE in the disorders and assessment/diagnosis available at the off-site must be attained at LSU prior to off-site placement.

RE:  "At Least 50 Supervised Clock Hours Must Be Completed in Each of Three Types of CLinical Setting."  (One setting is the LSU Clinic.)

The clinical settings may be within the organizational structure of the training institution or its affiliates.

Such settings may include separate units/settings within an institution or its affiliates:

UNITS:  brain injury units, stroke units, nursing homes, classrooms for severely language-impaired children

SETTINGS:  community clinics, public schools, rehabilitation centers, hospitals, private practice

*For the three clinical settings to be classified as different settings, the training institution must determine that the student has gained unique experiences in each one.

FOR EXAMPLE:
A student might have 50+ hrs. experience in an acute-care hospital (one off-site) and 50+ hrs. in one that provides a classroom for children who present communication disorders (site two).
 
 

Appendices
(Hard copy in Document Room)