Cheryl Cassidy Certified in Voice Treatment for Parkinson's Patients

By Pen Bay Healthcare
Christopher Burke, 594-6715
Belfast, Maine
http://waldo.villagesoup.com/financi...storyID=109044

ROCKPORT (Feb 12): Cheryl Cassidy, MA, CCC-SLP, of Mid-Coast Speech and Hearing, was recently certified in Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT) for patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (IPD).

LSVT is an intensive voice therapy program geared to increasing vocal loudness in patients with IPD. Patients attend four individual speech therapy sessions per week, for four weeks. The efficacy of this program has been well supported by the data, and there are currently 13 people in the state of Maine who hold LSVT certification.

Cassidy has long had an interest in voice therapy and, as a certified neuromuscular massage therapies, she offers very specific and specialized laryngeal massage to assist patients with vocal hyperfunction. However, such therapy is not effective for patients with IPD.

Now, with her new certification in LSVT, Cassidy looks forward to empowering patients with Parkinson's to take charge of one area of their health and regain their strong voices. Patients can access these services with a referral from their physician.

To learn more about LSVT, visit www.lsvt.org. And visit the Midcoast Speech and Hearing section at www.pbmc.org.

Cassidy is also available to talk with community groups. For more information, call Mid-Coast Speech and Hearing at 230-6380.

Penobscot Bay Medical Center is a member of the Pen Bay Healthcare family of services, which includes Kno-Wal-Lin Home Care and Hospice, Quarry Hill Retirement Community, the Knox Center for Long Term Care and the Mid-Coast Mental Health Center. Through these organizations, and a staff of more than 100 outstanding physicians and more than 1,700 healthcare professionals, we are able to provide members of our community with a continuum of care from birth throughout their lives. For more information, please visit www.penbayhealthcare.org.