CBIST Spotlight: Ana Stotlemeyer

Ana Stotlemeyer, M.S. CCC-SLP, CBIST, is a speech language pathologist in Albuquerque, N.M. Ana received her B.S. in Communicative Disorders at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her M.S. in Communicative Disorders at Eastern New Mexico University. Ana started her career working with children as an SLP-A and BCaBA. She has worked in multiple settings with both children and adults. It was during her graduate studies that Ana found her passion for working with adults recovering from brain injury while training at Craig Hospital. She currently works full time at an acute inpatient hospital.

What is your current position and credentials?

I am a speech language pathologist at Presbyterian Hospital (acute care), and I still work PRN at Lovelace UNM Rehabilitation Hospital (acute inpatient rehab, where I previously worked full time for six years).

Why have you chosen a career in brain injury? Why are you passionate about brain injury?

I started off my career working with children. Prior to going to grad school, I worked as a speech language pathologist assistant (SLP-A) and a board-certified assistant behavior analyst (BCaBA) with children who have developmental disabilities. It was through this work that I realized the importance of the connection between communication and behavior. In graduate school, I was actually a little upset that I had to complete my field work with adults (I had been absolutely sure I wanted to continue my work with children). However, while working with patients who were recovering from brain injury, I saw a great need for fostering that communication/behavior relationship in the adult population, too.

How has the field of brain injury changed in your time working?

I’ve seen a really awesome push towards functional therapy goals in the field of speech language pathology. Previously, SLPs had relied heavily on the use of workbooks and worksheets in therapy. While some worksheets may support patient goals… Typically, working on worksheets will help you complete worksheets more effectively, but where is the practical value in that? I’ve seen a lot of good changes in the field of SLP in terms of identifying individualized and practical goals for therapy.

Why is having a CBIST important to you? How is it helpful in your daily work?

(Having a) CBIS is so important to me because I think it is an ideal way to share information and best practices to better support those recovering from brain injury and their families/caregivers. Additionally, assisting with teaching a CBIS course has been a special way to connect with the brain injury community where I live.

What are some challenges you have faced working with individuals with brain injury?

One of the biggest challenges I have dealt with in the past is finding resources and support for patients and their families in the community after they leave the hospital setting. Many of our patients live in rural and underserved areas and have not always been able to receive follow-up medical care or therapies. The initiation of the UNM PM&R program and Brain Injury Fellowship program have helped with considerable growth in this area in recent years.

How can clinicians best support individuals, caregivers, and family members?

By collaborating! Each member holds an important perspective in caring for someone who is recovering from a brain injury (including the patient!). Problem solving is so much more fun when we put all our brains together.

What do you see as the future of the brain injury field/research/education?

The most important thing to me is continued research into education for all who interact and want to support individuals recovering from brain injury. I find that many people who interact with brain injury (family members, community members, clinicians, support staff, etc.) don’t always know the best way to support individuals recovering from brain injury. I hope that, as brain injury clinicians, we can foster communication and collaboration with our patients to work together to identify and support their needs.

Are you involved with BIAA or ACBIS in other ways?

Other ways I like to contribute to the brain injury community are by volunteering and participating with the Brain Injury Association of New Mexico and serving as a clinical connector for LoveYourBrain Foundation.