What is speech therapy at home?
Speech therapy at home in Tampa brings a licensed speech-language pathologist (SLP) to your house. Speech therapists do much more than work on speech. They help with three main areas:
- Swallowing: eating and drinking safely, and taking pills
- Communication: speaking clearly, finding words, understanding others, reading, writing and voice
- Cognition: memory, attention, problem-solving and keeping track of daily tasks
Working at home lets your therapist see how you eat, talk and manage your day where it actually happens. Visits may include:
- Swallowing evaluation and treatment: watching you eat and drink, then teaching exercises and safer swallowing strategies
- Diet texture recommendations: softer foods or thicker liquids when needed, shared with your doctor and care team
- Language therapy for aphasia: practice with naming, understanding, conversation, reading and writing
- Speech clarity: exercises for the lips, tongue and breath support, and strategies to be understood
- Memory and thinking strategies: memory aids, organizing the day and keeping medicine routines on track
- Voice therapy: exercises that build loudness and breath support, often helpful with Parkinson’s disease
- Other ways to communicate: picture boards, writing or simple devices when speaking is very hard
- Family training so the people at home know how to support meals and conversation
Making Memories Home Health is a Medicare-certified, Joint Commission accredited home health agency based in Tampa. Our speech therapists serve patients in Tampa, Riverview, Winter Haven and other communities across Hillsborough, Polk and Manatee counties, in English or Spanish.
Who qualifies for speech therapy at home?
Speech therapy at home may help if you or a loved one:
- Has trouble finding words, understanding others, reading or writing after a stroke (aphasia)
- Has slurred or hard-to-understand speech (dysarthria)
- Coughs, chokes or clears the throat while eating or drinking, or has trouble swallowing pills
- Has new problems with memory, attention or following directions after an illness or injury
- Has a soft, hoarse or weak voice, as can happen with Parkinson’s disease
- Is recovering from head, neck or throat surgery that affects speech or swallowing
For home health, a doctor or allowed practitioner (a nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist or physician assistant) must order your therapy and review your plan of care. You also need to be homebound. Leaving home must take considerable and taxing effort, though short, infrequent trips for medical care, religious services or adult day care are allowed.
For a look at the whole rehab process, read our guide to stroke recovery at home. Families caring for someone with memory loss may also find our article on dementia care at home helpful.
Swallowing safety at home
Swallowing problems, called dysphagia, are easy to miss and can be serious. When food or liquid goes into the airway instead of the stomach, it can lead to choking or a lung infection called aspiration pneumonia. Warning signs include coughing or a wet, gurgly voice during or after meals, food left in the cheeks, very slow eating, weight loss without trying, or repeated chest infections.
Your SLP may suggest sitting fully upright to eat, taking small bites and sips, and eating slowly with fewer distractions. If a closer look is needed, your therapist can recommend an instrumental swallow study to your doctor. Always follow the texture recommendations you are given, and check with your team before making changes.
If someone is choking and cannot breathe, speak or cough, or shows signs of a new stroke such as sudden face drooping, arm weakness or trouble speaking, call 911.
What a visit looks like
The first visit is an evaluation. Your therapist asks about your health history and what has changed, then checks how you speak, understand, remember and swallow, often during a drink or snack. Together you set goals, such as using the phone again or eating a meal safely.
Follow-up visits mix exercises with real-life practice: talking with family, reading the mail, managing a pill organizer or eating lunch. Your therapist leaves practice activities for between visits and updates the plan as you improve. A nurse from our skilled nursing team may help with medication management, including safer ways to take pills when swallowing is hard. Everyone works from one plan of care that your doctor approves.
Does Medicare cover speech therapy at home?
Medicare can cover speech-language therapy at home when you meet the home health rules:
- Your doctor or allowed practitioner certifies that you need part-time or intermittent skilled care and reviews your plan of care
- You are homebound
- You had a face-to-face visit with a provider, related to the reason for care, within the 90 days before or the 30 days after care starts
- Your care comes from a Medicare-certified agency, like Making Memories Home Health
Speech-language therapy is one of the skilled services that can qualify you for home health on its own. Medicare Advantage plans have their own rules, and some need approval first. Our Medicare home health page explains the details. You can also review the insurance plans we accept and call (813) 931-0015 to verify your coverage.
How to start speech therapy at home in Tampa
- Talk to your doctor. Ask whether a speech therapy evaluation at home makes sense, and request a referral to Making Memories Home Health. If you are in the hospital, ask the discharge planner.
- Call us at (813) 931-0015. Give us your doctor’s name and your insurance. We can contact your doctor’s office for the order.
- Your doctor sends the referral. Doctors and discharge planners can send a referral online or by fax.
- Your first visit. Your speech-language pathologist calls to schedule, then comes to your home for the evaluation.
- Your plan of care. You and your therapist set goals, and your doctor reviews and approves the plan.
If eating, talking or remembering has become harder, call Making Memories Home Health at (813) 931-0015. We are glad to answer your questions.
Frequently asked questions
What does a speech therapist do in home health care?
A speech-language pathologist evaluates and treats problems with swallowing, speaking, understanding language, memory and thinking skills, and voice. At home, much of the work happens during real meals and conversations, and the therapist teaches family members how to help.
My parent coughs during meals. Should we change what they eat?
Tell their doctor and ask whether a swallowing evaluation is needed. Avoid guessing at food or drink changes on your own; a speech-language pathologist can recommend the right textures and strategies for that person. If someone is choking and cannot breathe, speak or cough, call 911.
Does Medicare cover speech therapy at home?
Medicare can cover speech-language therapy at home when you meet the home health rules, including being homebound and having a doctor or allowed practitioner certify the need. Speech therapy is one of the services that can qualify you for home health on its own. Call (813) 931-0015 to verify your coverage.
How do we start speech therapy at home?
Ask the doctor, or the hospital discharge planner, for a home health referral to Making Memories Home Health that includes speech therapy. You can also call us at (813) 931-0015, and we will contact the doctor's office for the order. Then a therapist calls to schedule the first visit.
Can speech therapy still help if the stroke happened a while ago?
Many people keep making progress with language and communication well after the first months of recovery. A speech-language pathologist can evaluate whether therapy is likely to help now. As with any home health service, your doctor must order it and you must qualify.
Where we provide speech therapy
We visit patients at home in Hillsborough, Polk and Manatee counties, including:
Tampa · Brandon · Riverview · Plant City · Temple Terrace · Lutz · Carrollwood · Town 'n' Country · Lakeland · Winter Haven · Bradenton · Lakewood Ranch
Hillsborough County · Polk County · Manatee County
Insurance we accept
We accept Traditional Medicare, plus long-term care plans and private pay. Medicare Advantage coverage and our participation depend on your specific plan, so we verify both before care starts. Call (813) 931-0015 to verify your coverage. See insurance we accept.
Doctors, hospital discharge planners and case managers can send a home health referral by fax to (813) 931-0017. How to refer a patient.
Other services
Making Memories Home Health provides home health care services.
Skilled Nursing · Wound Care · Home IV Therapy · Catheter Care · Medication Management · Physical Therapy · Occupational Therapy · Medical Social Work · Home Health Aide · Medicare Home Health · Home Care & Long-Term Care