Raana Walsh

I am privileged to be a Co-Director at Spectrum Therapy WA, alongside Juliana Wilks. In 2016, our paths crossed through the connection of mutual clients, and the rest as they say, was history!

I am Speech Pathologist first and foremost. I don’t foresee a future in which I don’t have a clinical caseload to balance out the role and responsibilities of co-running a NDIS registered private practice.

I have committed the past decade (plus) to developing collaborative relationships with children, teenagers, and young adults with a varying range of diagnoses including but not limited to Autism, Intellectual Disability, Down Syndrome, Epilepsy, Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Spinal Muscular Atrophy, and chromosomal conditions. As a proud neurodivergent person myself, I have honed my focus into supporting others to celebrate their differences and apply their strengths to assist functional goal achievement.

I believe in equality, inclusion, transparency, and integrity, and as such, want to support people to build the skills they desire, so that they can lead a life that is meaningful to them. I personally understand the value that skilled professionals can have on one’s life and aim to leave all client’s I support, feeling valued, seen, heard, and supported.

I admire the work of Dr. Ross Greene and consider his Collaborative and Proactive Solutions (CPS) model heavily when supporting clients. This model compliments the neurodiversity affirming approach I strive to implement in my daily practice, which centres heavily around total communication, self-expression and acceptance, inclusion and participation, regulation, education, protective behaviours and understanding the social world around us.

Outside of work you can find me regulating my own sensory needs through one of the following…. Audiobooks, engaging in learning about my special interests (animals, wilderness survival and history for the win), sitting in silence whilst watching the large trees in my backyard sway in the breeze, spending time with my dog Maisy or with family and friends.