What are the different Service Delivery Models?

Collaborative Consultation

This type of indirect service is employed when a group of individuals (e.g., the SLP and teacher) collaboratively solve problems related to the students academic and functional skills (Miller, 1989). Collaborative consultation is described as an interactive process that enables groups of people with diverse expertise to generate creative solutions to mutually defined problems (Idol, Paolucci-Whitcomb & Nevin, 1994, p. 1). It can be the medium that supports interactions between teachers and SLPs in order to address the students speech and language weaknesses (Merritt & Culatta, 1998).

There are several disadvantages to utilizing collaborative consultation. First, it can be difficult to find time to collaborate with teachers on an ongoing basis. Second, many SLPs do not have the pre-service training in order to implement a collaborative consultation model. Next, collaborative consultation is not often recognized as speech therapy by school staff, parents, and administrators. Lastly, it may be difficult to find a teacher or staff member who would be willing to collaborate to solve a problem.