Medical speech-language pathologists helped Lilliam Huerta speak and eat again. 

Mount Sinai Each May, Better Hearing & Speech Month (BHSM) provides an opportunity to raise awareness about communication disorders and providing life-altering treatment. In honor of this special month, we celebrate former patient Lilliam Huerta and her remarkable care team who recently helped Huerta improve her quality of life with a treatment plan that allowed Lilliam to regain her ability to speak and eat.

What is a speech-language pathologist?

Medical speech-language pathologists (SLPs) diagnose and treat speech, language, and swallowing disorders by working collaboratively with a patient’s medical team and contributing crucial information to the overall treatment plan.  

Whether it is conducting an instrumental swallow study such as to identify dysphagia or perform an evaluation to facilitate verbal communication for a tracheostomy patient, medical SLPs will create unique treatment plans specific to the needs and goals of the patient while providing education, counseling, and support.

Lilliam’s Story

Lilliam was admitted to Mount Sinai on mechanical ventilation and a tracheostomy malfunction.  Speech was consulted and the treating Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) learned that Lilliam was eating at her facility despite being on the vent- normally patients on vents are typically fed via feeding tube— it’s extremely rare for a vented patient to eat by mouth. That’s what makes this case so special. 

The SLP coordinated with nursing, respiratory, and radiology, where a Modified Barium Swallow Study (MBS) completed. Thanks to this insight, Lilliam was able to start eating her favorite foods via mouth again. 

What’s more, the SLP also completed an inline Passy Muir Valve (PMV) evaluation and it was determined that Lilliam could access her voice and speak again. Lilliam was able to communicate verbally with her nurses, doctors, staff, and family for the first time since being admitted.

Thanks to the efforts and expertise of the SLP and support from the other disciplines and the medical team, Lilliam was able to eat and communicate despite being on mechanical ventilation. 

Lilliam and her family expressed their gratitude to the entire team whose focus was on providing the best possible care while improving Lillaim’s quality of life.