Emerging issues in speech therapy in Iran.

ABSTRACT

This report is a short review of the form and content of speech and language therapy services and the trend of their institutionalization in Iran. A summary of formal education in speech and language therapy in Iran as originated by establishing a 4-year BS rehabilitation program in the College of Rehabilitation Sciences in Tehran is given. Since then, speech and language rehabilitation programs have been expanding both in size and quality, resulting in about 1,000 speech therapists practicing in hospitals and rehabilitation centers throughout the country. The expansion of graduate programs at MS level in three different institutions and a prospective PhD program are also adding to the quality of these services. The content of the theory courses and clinical practice courses as well as research on specific speech and language disorders and cross-linguistic studies are briefly described.