Aaaaaand, we’re back!
A warm welcome to SALTS Insider, from your friendly editors
We’re back. (Well, kind of.)
We have a new name, a new look, new platform, new goals, new stories, new editors, and hopefully, many more new readers. With all the new, we don’t know if “we’re back” is all that accurate. Perhaps we should say we’ve had a really thorough makeover. And like any homeowner of a freshly renovated house, we can’t wait to welcome you in and show you around.
But this endeavour is not about us. SALTS Insider is about you and our local speechie world. The Allied Health Professional Council (AHPC) reported that as of December 2021, we had 778 registered speechies practising on our sunny little island. Even with our new grads and students, our circle is tiny. Yet, to be honest, outside our own socio-professional bubble, many of us hardly know what anyone else is up to.
So, let’s get personal and meet our own — the ones who care, the doers, thinkers, movers, shakers, researchers, our peers, the everyday speechie, the speechie-to-be, and hopefully, you. We can’t wait to delve into your thoughts, hear different voices, celebrate our achievements and maybe, along the way, find the blueprint of our community.
But for now, we’ll keep things simple. A new post every month or so. Each feature will either showcase our people, their perspectives or report their latest research efforts. Once a quarter, you can expect us to slide into your mailbox with a collection of the latest posts. And if you’ve got an idea to contribute, send it our way at insider@salts.org.sg.
We reckon we’re in for a ride and we’d love for you to join us in this madcap journey. Hopefully, you’ll discover something, feel connected, have an ah-ha moment, be inspired, pause and think, or (at the very least) be entertained.
Welcome to SALTS Insider. Settle in, get comfy, and we’ll see you real soon.
— The Editors
We all remember our uni days- perhaps it was exciting, stressful, traumatic, or a mind boggling mix of everything.
For SpeechieBites founders, Samuel Chi and Alexis Hu, being SLP students in Australia was enjoyable but somewhat isolating, and they often found themselves wondering what working life would be as an SLP in Singapore, and the different areas they could contribute to after graduation.
Fast forward a few years, as working clinicians, Samuel and Alexis were inspired to create the SpeechieBites community for SLP students – a community that they would have wanted to have.
Student participants’ word cloud of qualities for a good speech therapist.
Since December 2021, they have organised gatherings online for SLP students and clinicians to connect. Their hope is to create a support network within the local SLP community, specifically for students and budding SLPs who may feel lost.
Samuel shared: “As practising speechies, through SALTS, we hope that SpeechieBites can be that bridge to connect students to speechies and help grow that network even before students graduate.”
Screenshot from an online Speechie Bites event.
So what can students or clinicians expect from the SpeechieBites community?
For students, expect opportunities to connect with practising speechies and stay tuned for their sharings and talks on topics such as work-life balance, clinical experiences, and sometimes even life advice.
For clinicians, Speechie Bites is a good chance to link up with other SLPs, get to know future clinicians, and share about their own experiences starting out as an SLP. SpeechieBites is also on the lookout for speakers for their quarterly themed talks, and are open to suggestions on specific topics for upcoming sessions.
Speechie Bites has a small but growing number of followers on both Facebook and Instagram. Their exciting 2022 calendar includes themed talks exploring the work experiences in different settings, mentor-to-student pairings, and, now with the easing of Covid-19 restrictions, physical networking sessions!
Sign up for the first physical networking session on 14th July 2022 here.
Find out more at SpeechieBites on Facebook and @speechie.bites on Instagram!
