Pediatric traumatic brain injury: SLP roles from hospital to school, per ASHA
ASHA’s Practice Portal covers traumatic brain injury (TBI) from birth through age 21 and lists SLP roles that include “Screening children with TBI for hearing, speech, language, cognitive-communication, and swallowing difficulties” and “Facilitating the transition of services between medical, educational, community, and vocational settings.” This page quotes ASHA only.
Quoted from official pages checked November 12, 2026. Confirm current information on those sites. This page is not medical advice and does not describe any patient’s care.
Source read on November 12, 2026: ASHA’s Practice Portal page Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury.
ASHA’s Practice Portal pages are written for clinicians. Quotes below stop before ASHA’s in-text research citations.
This page adds the SLP angle to the concussion and traumatic brain injury rehabilitation pages, which quote CDC and NINDS.
Scope
ASHA states: “The scope of this page is pediatric traumatic brain injury (ages birth through 21 years).” It keeps a separate Practice Portal page on traumatic brain injury in adults.
Roles for SLPs
- “Providing training (e.g., in the use of augmentative and alternative communication [AAC] systems) to people with TBI and their caregivers and educators.”
- “Counseling people with TBI and their caregivers on impairments and providing education to prevent further TBI complications.”
- “Consulting and collaborating with other professionals (e.g., teachers, neuropsychologists, occupational and physical therapists) to facilitate program development and to provide supervision, evaluation, and/or expert testimony, as appropriate.”
- “Advocating for individuals with TBI and their families, particularly in school settings where cognitive-communication disorders may be mistaken for attitudinal or motivational problems.”
ASHA also lists serving on the school planning or IEP team to decide eligibility, services, and transition planning (paraphrased). See IEPs and IFSPs.
What this page does not do
It does not repeat ASHA’s injury types, prevalence figures, or assessment and treatment procedures. It is not medical advice and does not recommend any treatment, medicine, device, or product. Scope of practice is set by state law; check your state board.