Cognitive Communication Disorders Speech Therapy in Perth

What are Cognitive-Communication Disorders?

Cognitive-communication difficulties occur when changes in thinking skills affect how a person communicates in everyday life. This can involve challenges with:

• Attention (staying focused, filtering distractions)

• Memory (remembering information, following multi-step conversations)

• Executive functions (planning, organising, problem-solving, self-monitoring)

• Processing speed (taking longer to understand or respond)

• Social communication (interpreting context, turn-taking, staying on topic)

Cognitive-communication difficulties are often seen after acquired brain injury (such as traumatic brain injury or stroke) and can also occur in progressive neurological conditions.

At Palms Physiotherapy & Allied Health, our speech pathologists assess cognitive-communication difficulties in children and adults and provide practical, individualised support focused on functional communication and participation.

Common Signs and Symptoms

Cognitive-communication difficulties can look different from person to person. Common signs may include:

• Difficulty sustaining attention in conversations or groups

• Losing track of what’s being discussed or needing frequent repetition

• Difficulty remembering names, details, instructions, or key points

• Trouble organising thoughts, telling stories clearly, or staying on topic

• Slower responses, difficulty processing complex information, or feeling overwhelmed in conversation

• Reduced problem-solving or flexible thinking during everyday tasks and communication

• Social communication changes (e.g., interrupting, difficulty reading cues, saying things that seem off-topic)

• Reduced awareness of errors or difficulty self-correcting

These challenges can affect relationships, school learning, work performance, and community participation.

What Causes Cognitive-Communication Difficulties?

Cognitive-communication difficulties may occur due to:

• Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI): concussion or more severe injury can affect attention, memory, and executive functioning, impacting communication.

• Stroke: stroke can affect communication through language changes (aphasia) and/or cognitive-communication changes (attention, executive functioning, processing, pragmatics), depending on the area of the brain involved.

• Progressive neurological conditions: some conditions can affect thinking and communication over time (e.g., certain dementias, Parkinsonism, multiple sclerosis).

• Other acquired neurological events: including brain tumours, hypoxic injury, infections, or neurological illnesses (where relevant).

Where appropriate, we work alongside medical teams, neuropsychology, occupational therapy, and families to support a coordinated approach.

How Speech Pathology Helps Cognitive-Communication Difficulties

Speech pathology support is focused on communication in real life—not just “exercises.” Therapy may include:

• Assessment: identifying how attention, memory, and executive functioning affect communication at home, school, work, and in the community.

• Functional strategy training: practical strategies for remembering information, planning messages, staying on topic, and managing fatigue/distraction.

• Partner and family training: teaching communication partners how to support understanding, reduce breakdowns, and improve success in conversation.

• Environmental supports: simplifying routines, using visual supports, checklists, calendars, cue cards, and structured communication systems.

• Conversation and discourse therapy: building skills for storytelling, explaining, summarising, and participating in group conversations.

• Social communication support: targeting pragmatic skills such as turn-taking, topic maintenance, perspective-taking, and repairing misunderstandings.

Therapy plans are tailored to the individual’s goals (e.g., returning to work, managing school demands, improving independence, or rebuilding participation after injury).

Benefits of Cognitive-Communication Therapy

Speech pathology support can help clients to:

• Communicate more effectively in daily interactions

• Improve participation at school, work, and in social settings

• Reduce frustration and communication breakdowns

• Build confidence using practical strategies and supports

• Support families and carers with tools to communicate more successfully

Progress varies depending on the cause, severity, supports available, and consistency of practice—but targeted intervention can make a meaningful difference in day-to-day life.

Cognitive-Communication Difficulties in Children

In children, cognitive skills such as attention, working memory, planning, and self-monitoring can affect learning and communication. Support may focus on:

• Following instructions and classroom language demands

• Organising spoken and written messages

• Storytelling and explaining ideas clearly

• Social communication in play and peer interactions

• Building routines and supports that reduce overload and improve participation

Sessions are developmentally appropriate and may use play-based or structured activities aligned with the child’s goals and environment.

Cognitive-Communication Difficulties in Adults

In adults, cognitive-communication changes can impact independence, relationships, and return to work. Therapy may focus on:

• Workplace communication strategies (meetings, phone calls, written messages)

• Managing conversation in noisy environments or groups

• Planning and organising day-to-day communication tasks

• Using compensatory strategies and tools (notes, prompts, routines, apps)

• Supporting family communication and reducing breakdowns at home
  
  

Access Cognitive-Communication Therapy in Perth

If you’re seeking cognitive-communication support in Perth, our speech pathology team can help with assessment, practical strategies, and goal-focused therapy to improve everyday communication and participation.

Speech Therapy Services We Provide

Paediatric Speech Therapy

• Paediatric speech therapy supports children with speech, language, communication, and early literacy needs using evidence-based and child-friendly approaches. Sessions may be play-based (especially for younger children), while still being structured and goal-directed.

• Common areas we support include:

  1. Speech sound development (clarity and intelligibility)

  2. Language delays and developmental language disorder

  3. Social communication support

  4. AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) where appropriate

  5. Early literacy foundations (e.g., phonological awareness)

Adult Speech Therapy

• Adult speech therapy supports adults with communication and swallowing needs related to neurological conditions, injury, medical events, or age-related changes. Therapy is practical, functional, and designed around everyday participation (home, work, community).

• Common areas we support include:

  1. Communication changes after stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI), or neurological illness

  2. Dysarthria and motor speech changes

  3. Cognitive-communication difficulties (attention, memory, organisation impacting communication)

  4. Voice therapy where indicated

  5. Dysphagia support and mealtime strategies

NDIS Speech Therapy Services

• NDIS speech therapy is available for self-managed and plan-managed participants. Therapy may focus on functional communication goals, speech clarity, social interaction and participation, and AAC support where required. We collaborate with participants, families, support coordinators, schools, and relevant providers to support practical, meaningful outcomes.

Speech Therapy for Swallowing Disorders (Dysphagia)

• Dysphagia (swallowing) support helps when swallowing difficulties affect hydration, nutrition, safety and confidence with eating and drinking. Our speech pathologists can complete clinical assessments (as appropriate), provide strategies for safer swallowing, recommend targeted exercises when indicated, and support shared-care referral pathways with GPs/ENT/medical teams when needed.

Speech Therapy – What We Can Help With

Speech pathologists (speech therapists) support children and adults with a wide range of speech, language, voice, fluency, and swallowing needs. Below is a practical overview of the common areas we assess and treat at Palms.

Speech Sound & Motor Speech

• Articulation Disorders: Difficulty producing specific speech sounds clearly (e.g., /s/, /r/, /l/).

• Phonological Disorders: Patterns/rules of sound errors that reduce intelligibility (e.g., fronting, final consonant deletion).

• Apraxia of Speech: Motor planning/programming difficulty; speech errors may be inconsistent and speech can sound “choppy.”

• Dysarthria: Speech changes due to weakness, tone or coordination differences affecting speech muscles.

Language

• Expressive Language Disorder: Difficulty using words/sentences to share ideas, tell stories, ask questions, or use grammar accurately.

• Receptive Language Disorder: Difficulty understanding spoken/written language, following instructions, or processing complex language.

• Mixed Expressive–Receptive Language Disorder: Difficulties with both understanding and expressing language.

• Developmental Delays: Support when speech and language milestones are developing more slowly than expected.

• Aphasia: Language difficulty often after stroke/brain injury, affecting speaking, understanding, reading and/or writing.

Voice

• Hoarseness or Strained Voice: Raspy, breathy, strained or unreliable voice; can relate to vocal load, inflammation, reflux, or vocal fold changes.

• Vocal Cord Paralysis: One or both vocal folds do not move normally, impacting voice, breathing and/or swallowing.

• Resonance Disorders: Speech that sounds overly nasal or “blocked”; may be structural, neuromuscular and/or learned.

• Gender Affirming Voice and Speech Therapy: Support to align voice and communication with gender identity using safe, evidence-based voice techniques.

• Psychogenic Voice Disorders and Conversion Disorder: Voice changes linked to psychological factors; therapy supports voice recovery and functional communication.

Fluency

• Stuttering: Disruptions to speech flow (repetitions, prolongations, blocks) that can impact confidence and participation.

• Cluttering: Fast or irregular speech rate that can reduce clarity and organisation of spoken messages.

Social Communication

•  Pragmatic Language Disorder: Support for conversation skills, turn-taking, topic maintenance, inference, and interpreting non-verbal cues.

Swallowing & Feeding

• Dysphagia (Swallowing Disorders): Assessment and strategies to support safe swallowing and reduce aspiration risk (often alongside GP/ENT/medical teams when needed).

Hearing & Listening

• Hearing Impairments: Therapy to support listening, speech clarity, language development, and communication strategies in partnership with audiology where required.

Neurological Conditions

• Speech Therapy for Neurological Conditions: Communication and swallowing rehabilitation for stroke, TBI, Parkinson’s disease, MS, dementia and other neurological conditions.

Early Literacy & Phonological Awareness

• Phonological Awareness: Therapy targeting sound awareness skills that underpin reading/spelling (rhyming, blending, segmenting, manipulation).

Post-Surgical Head & Neck Rehab

• Post‑Surgical Rehabilitation for Laryngectomy and Head and Neck Cancer: Multidisciplinary support for communication, swallowing and function after surgery/treatment (in shared care with your treating team).

Why Choose Palms Physiotherapy & Allied Health for Speech Therapy?

Experienced Speech Pathologists: Skilled in paediatric and adult communication and swallowing support.

NDIS Provider (self- and plan-managed): Therapy is aligned to participant goals and everyday function.

Family-Centred Approach: We involve parents, carers, and supports where appropriate so strategies carry over into real life.

Collaborative, Multidisciplinary Care: We work alongside our broader allied health team when integrated support is beneficial.

Sensory Room & Kids Therapy Gym

Our sensory room and kids therapy gym can support therapy goals through a motivating, functional environment—particularly helpful for children who benefit from movement-based learning and sensory regulation strategies. These spaces may be used when clinically relevant to support engagement, attention, participation, and goal progress.

Australian Resources for Cognitive-Communication Disorders

For further information on cognitive-communication disorders and available support resources in Australia, visit the following websites:

Speech Pathology Australia – Explore resources and find a certified speech pathologist to help with cognitive-communication disorders.
www.speechpathologyaustralia.org.au

Brain Injury Australia – Offers resources, support, and advocacy for individuals affected by brain injury, including cognitive-communication challenges.
www.braininjuryaustralia.org.au

Dementia Australia – Provides information and support for individuals with dementia and their families, including communication strategies.
www.dementia.org.au

Raising Children Network – Offers practical advice and resources for parents of children with developmental disorders, including cognitive-communication issues.
www.raisingchildren.net.au

Better Health Channel – Provides general information on communication disorders and cognitive impairments.
www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au

Important disclaimer: This webpage contains general information only and is not intended to be relied upon as personal clinical advice. While we aim to keep information accurate and up to date, it may not reflect the most current research or your individual circumstances. Palms Physiotherapy & Allied Health does not accept liability for decisions made based on this information without an individualised assessment by an appropriately qualified health professional. If you have concerns, please contact us to book an assessment or speak with your GP/medical team.