Foundations and Professional Practice
Foundations and Professional Practice tests how speech-language pathologists and audiologists apply ethics, law, scope of practice, supervision, reimbursement, and evidence-based decision-making in real settings. The exam favors applied scenarios over isolated definitions.
Core rules
- ASHA's Code of Ethics is organized around four principles: responsibilities to persons served, professional competence, responsibilities to the public, and responsibilities to the profession. Ethical dilemmas require identifying the principle, the affected party, and the least restrictive action that protects both care and honesty.
- FAPE, LRE, child find, IEP/IFSP procedures, and procedural safeguards come from IDEA; Section 504 and the ADA address disability discrimination and access, not IEP entitlement.
- HIPAA protects health information; FERPA protects education records. Share only the minimum necessary and use written releases.
- Evidence-based practice integrates high-quality research, clinical expertise, and client values and preferences-not just published studies.
- Scope of practice differences matter: an SLP cannot independently diagnose hearing loss, and an audiologist does not treat language disorders.
Worked example
A clinic owner asks an SLP to bill for 60 minutes of therapy when the session lasted 35 minutes and to add a swallowing treatment code that was not provided. The SLP should refuse the inaccurate claim, document the actual service, and correct any submitted claim. Reasoning: billing for undocumented or unprovided services violates the Code's integrity principle and is fraud; pressure from an employer does not change the professional obligation.
Traps
- Treating the ASHA Code as a legal statute; it guides conduct, but state licensure and law govern practice.
- Equating a 504 plan with an IEP.
- Using family members as interpreters for sensitive evaluations.
- Supervising assistants by phone without required direct or indirect contact.