Holly Mitchell

Director of Playful Paediatrics

Principal Holistic Speech Pathologist

Holly graduated from the University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Speech Pathology with first class Honours and now has over 14 years of experience. In recent years she has also worked as a lecturer and Area of Practice Lead, in the area of multimodal communication (MMC), at La Trobe University, Melbourne.

Holly has extensive experience in Australia and abroad after spending 7 years as a speech pathologist in London, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. Throughout her time abroad, she developed a diverse range of skills and gained experience supporting families intensively, as a speech pathologist, transdisciplinary therapist, and health care coordinator.

What Approach Does she take?

Holly is passionate about the provision of holistic and functional supports to enable increased generalisation of learned communication skills within all environments.

She is a neuroaffirming therapist supporting all children to understand their different neurotypes, advocate for them and thrive.

Holly always seeks to ensure that therapy is collaborative so that she understand all of the child and family needs.

She has vast experience in sensory integration and emotional regulation, incorporating this knowledge within her practice so that children bodies and minds are supported and ultimately ready to engage and learn.

She values playful, family-centred intervention and loves engaging families and clients in the therapy process, from evaluation to discharge.

Specific areas of expertise

Holly’s specific areas of expertise and interest include holistic therapy, Autism, multimodal communication (including Augmentative and Alternative Communication, AAC), and working with children with complex and/or multiple needs. She is passionate about finding appropriate speech generating devices for those with complex communication needs including device trials and applications for funding.

Holly is also highly experienced in supporting children and their families understand and support challenging behaviours by collaboratively solving problems.

Want to play and learn from Holly’s extensive experience?

GET IN TOUCH - 0460 830 304, holly@playfulpaediatrics.com.au

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Experience

  • Multimodal Communication - Augmentative and Alternative communication (AAC)

    • Low tech communication aids - Visual schedules, communication books (incl PODD), and Aided Language Displays (ALDs)

    • Speech Generating Devices - trials and funding applications plus therapeutic supports to implement the devices

    • Key Word Sign (KWS)

    • The Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS)

  • Collaborative and Proactive Solutions

    - Dr Ross Greene advanced training

  • Evidence Based EFT Trainer - Emotional Freedom Techniques - Tapping

  • Picture Tapping Technique - EFT

  • Preverbal and early communication development

  • Children with complex communication needs

  • Social Communication differences - understanding, self advocation and perspective taking

  • Autism and ADHD - Neurodiversity affirming therapist

  • Sensory Integration Trained therapist

  • Articulation Difficulties

  • Language delays and disorders

  • Literacy assessment and support (Sounds Write Trained)

  • Challenging behaviours analysis and support

  • PROMPT Trained- Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Targets (2016)

  • Paediatric feeding and swallowing difficulties

  • Experience in transdisciplinary therapy approach

  • Health Care Coordination and key worker support

MEMBERSHIPS

  • Speech Pathology Australia - Certified Practising Speech Pathologist - SPA CPSP

  • ASHA - Certificate of Clinical Competence for Speech-Language Pathologists (CCC-SLP)

  • AGOSCI member - Australian Group on Severe Communication Impairment