Heidi Kavanagh

 

Heidi is a Speech and Language Pathologist from Ireland. She graduated from Trinity College, Dublin, the top ranked university in the country. Heidi completed her degree in the longest established, accredited undergraduate speech and language therapy programme in Ireland, Clinical Speech and Language Studies, where she received Honours. She is a member of the Irish Association of Speech and Language Therapists (IASLT) and holds conditional registration with the Allied Health Professions Council (AHPC).

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At Total Communication Therapy, Heidi works with children with a range of speech and language challenges including language delays and disorders, speech disorders, fluency disorders, and social skills difficulties. Many of these children have dual diagnoses of ASD, ADHD, and intellectual impairment. Heidi also has experience with assessment of gifted (twice exceptional) children and their unique sets of challenges. Heidi is trained in Karen Stagnitti’s Learn to Play, and works with numerous resources such as Visualizing and Verbalizing, Social Thinking, Conscious Discipline, Lego Therapy, and Dynamic Intelligence processes.

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Heidi has previously worked at a non-profit organisation, Enable Ireland, providing assessment and intervention for children with primarily physical needs such as cerebral palsy and dyspraxia, with accompanying speech and language challenges including language delays and disorders, speech disorders, fluency disorders, feeding and swallowing difficulties, and social skills difficulties. Many of these children had dual diagnoses of ASD, ADHD, or intellectual impairment.

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Alongside her academic work in university, Heidi spent much of her spare time engaging in volunteer work with various charitable organisations, including social clubs for adults with intellectual disabilities, and homework clubs, afterschool clubs, literacy clubs, and drama and music clubs for children in disadvantaged areas in Dublin City. It is through this work that Heidi developed much of her passion and understanding of the integral part that communication and connection plays in the personal, emotional, and academic development of both children and adults alike, especially those that may start their journey at a disadvantage. During her summers, Heidi continued to foster this spirit through volunteering at a charitable organisation for young children with physical disabilities, as well as working for three months abroad in Seattle, USA, as a camp counsellor. Here she was responsible for the care of children and adults with diagnoses including Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, OCD, intellectual impairments, cerebral palsy, and epilepsy.

 

Heidi is passionate about supporting children to reach their full potential. She believes that each child has their own unique strengths and skills that should be identified, developed, utilised, and cherished throughout childhood and beyond.