Should a PT be teaching manual therapy to SLPs?
Should a physical therapist be teaching intervention strategies to speech-language pathologists?
Currently, there is an advertisement circulating across social media platforms for a manual therapy tongue course I created for Talk Tools. As my various social media profiles probably fit the target audience for this ad, I see it as I scroll through my feed daily. Like many, I hesitate to open the comments section on posts, as some people’s behaviors shown on Facebook, etc., seem to gravitate towards the anti-social end of the continuum. Yet, despite knowing this, I click on the comments like a moth to a flame. Nearly all the currently 37 remarks are positive, though a few negatives have also been noted. One comment questioned why a PT should be “teaching a course addressing issues waaaaaay outside your scope of practice.” Fair point.
One thing I stress at every seminar is that I am not a speech-language pathologist (or any other profession, save for being a PT). I also stress I know only a small fraction of what every other individual attending my classes (or taking one online) knows, and make no claims to the contrary. What I teach is how to incorporate a shared decision-making model of manual therapy into the current treatment routines of various professionals (SLPs included). It struck me that this comment, while well-intended, ignores others in similar positions. When I began teaching in this niche, I was aware of another PT who taught a different version of manual therapy for dysphagia and had successfully been doing so for several years. I also reflected on this person’s concerns regarding the diagnoses that are discussed in my classes, many of which ARE outside of the typical scope of practice (SOP) for a PT.
Maintaining personal and professional boundaries is a critical aspect of our clinical work. Knowing where my expertise and legal allowances end is an elementary aspect of professional service, and I know where my SOP stops. But I also know there are concepts outside an individual’s SOP that can prove influential and can add significant value to one’s practice. Possibly this commenter is wishing I were an SLP so that they could see my educational opportunities as appropriate. Sorry, I’m not an SLP. But I’m not sorry for opening doors for the thousands of SLPs who have taken my trainings and have found value for themselves and the many patients they treat.
What are your thoughts on this dilemma? I am not stopping due to one person’s concerns, but am I missing the bigger picture? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this matter. You can do so by commenting on this blog post.
Walt Fritz, PT
