Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP, Speech Therapist), Skilled Nursing & Post-Acute Care
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Hiring an SLP for skilled nursing and post-acute care means checking swallowing experience, communication assessment, and follow-through across nursing, therapy, and discharge planning.
No postings. No stacks of resumes. No chasing. You interview a short list.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
Need someone now? Call 305-306-4829.
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What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
What does an open seat cost you every week?
An open role costs you more than the recruiting fee. Someone covers the work, waits for care, or stops a service. We ask what is falling behind and who is carrying it. Use your own figures to compare the cost of waiting with the cost of hiring.
The seat is costing you every week.
Overtime, diverted patients, a stretched team and a schedule held together by favors.
The posting brought the wrong people.
Applicants arrive, but the person who has done this exact work is employed and not looking.
You are the one chasing.
Screening calls, no-shows and follow-ups land on the desk of someone with a facility to run.
What does this hire really come down to?
A speech-language pathologist may evaluate a new admission, address swallowing concerns, assess cognition, and explain communication strategies during one shift. We help you distinguish direct SNF experience from adjacent backgrounds. The search starts with your resident mix, referral process, instrumental assessment access, and expectations for documentation and team communication.
Ask what happens after nursing reports coughing during a meal. A useful answer describes gathering relevant history, completing an assessment within the clinician's scope, communicating findings, and arranging further evaluation when indicated.
Communication and cognitive work deserve equal attention. If a resident struggles to follow discharge instructions, ask how the SLP separates language, memory, hearing, and participation concerns. Listen for functional goals and clear handoffs. Your employer-led credentialing and clinical assessment should test practice judgment; our screening examines credentials, work history, and setting fit.
We arrange locum tenens, travel and contract coverage on request. Credentialing, licensing and malpractice coverage are confirmed per engagement before anyone starts.
What do we check before you see anyone?
Confirm the state SLP license and ASHA Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP). Ask candidates to explain their current status and any restrictions. Treat CCC-SLP as a credential to verify, not a universal legal mandate. Distinguish reviewing instrumental reports from performing those examinations.
- Ask, 'What swallowing cases did you assess in your most recent position?' Look for specific patient populations, assessment responsibilities, referrals for MBSS or FEES, and communication with nursing and prescribers.
- Ask, 'How would you assess communication after a stroke when fatigue limits participation?' A useful answer explains gathering history, adjusting the assessment, documenting limitations, and translating findings into practical communication supports rather than merely naming a test.
- Ask, 'How do you write cognitive goals that matter for discharge?' Look for examples involving daily routines, comprehension, memory supports, or caregiver instruction. The answer should connect assessment findings to observable function without promising a particular recovery.
- Ask, 'What do you document when a resident declines a session?' Listen for an accurate account, communication with the appropriate team members, and a plan for reassessment. Ask how the clinician handles conflicting chart information without copying unsupported conclusions.
- Ask, 'How have you taught nursing staff or family members a resident-specific strategy?' Strong answers identify the audience, demonstration, checks for understanding, and follow-up. Look for concise instructions that remain usable when the SLP is not present.
Where do we find them, and why would they move?
We source from hospitals and SNFs where SLPs may already handle adult swallowing, neurologic communication, and discharge-related work. Hospital experience can transfer well, but ask about longer stays and repeated staff education. Someone may consider moving for a steadier site assignment or more continuity with residents.
Schools, pediatric clinics, and graduate SLP programs offering clinical fellows provide additional pools. Those backgrounds need closer review for adult medical readiness and supervision needs. State education certification applies to school roles, not automatically to SNF practice. A clinician seeking adult rehabilitation work still needs evidence of preparation for your caseload.
Which mistakes stall the search?
A common mistake is treating all dysphagia experience as equivalent. Ask who performed instrumental studies, how findings were interpreted, and what responsibilities belonged to the candidate. Another is overlooking cognitive and communication referrals because swallowing dominates the interview. Review how candidates build functional goals and explain progress to the discharge team.
Hiring a clinical fellow without defining supervision. Confirm the available supervisor, applicable license status, and fellowship arrangements before deciding the position fits.
How would we run the search for this opening?
Tell us whether the role covers one building or several, short-stay rehabilitation or longer-term residents, and on-site or external instrumental services. We review license and certification status, employment history, and examples of adult assessment and team communication. You interview shortlisted clinicians and complete your credentialing and clinical assessment.
Define the actual assignment
Include documentation systems, referral patterns, and any supervision responsibilities.
Screen against the caseload
We ask about experience gaps directly, including transitions from school or pediatric work into medical care.
Assess and decide
Use a hypothetical admission or discharge case to examine reasoning, then confirm supervision, schedule, and access to assessment services before an offer.
The role and the setting
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Must our SNF SLP perform MBSS or FEES?
That depends on your service model and assigned duties. Verify procedure-specific experience when performance is part of the job; otherwise, examine referral judgment and interpretation of outside reports. It should distinguish bedside findings from information available through modified barium swallow studies (MBSS) or fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES).
Can a school SLP transition into post-acute care?
Possibly, but school certification does not demonstrate adult medical competence. Ask about recent adult clinical experience, dysphagia preparation, and the support needed for the transition.
Should we consider a clinical fellow?
Consider one only after reviewing license status and fellowship supervision arrangements. Your staffing plan must support supervised development rather than assume independent practice.
How do we assess discharge-related cognitive work?
Present a hypothetical resident who forgets instructions between sessions. Ask for assessment reasoning, functional goals, caregiver teaching, and documentation of remaining barriers.
What should a multi-building SLP interview cover?
Ask how referrals, travel, documentation, and staff communication fit into the workday. Discuss who receives urgent concerns when the clinician is at another building.
What should you send us about this role?
Send us the role, where the person will work and what needs to change with this hire. We will ask about the work, not just the title. Share any license or schedule limits that could rule someone out before we begin the search.
Share your resident mix and swallowing-service arrangements. We can help you frame the search around the work your SLP will actually perform.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
What do you get at each step of the search?
Our process for every search: calibrate the seat with you, map the market, research the real people, reach out to each one personally, qualify them in live conversation, then hand you a short list with a written brief on each person and support through the offer.
Search Calibration
You get an agreed brief: the work, reporting line, credentials, schedule, and offer you can make.
Market Mapping
You get a search aimed at relevant backgrounds, including people working now who have not applied.
Professional Contact Intelligence
We check appropriate ways to reach the people identified for your search. You do not have to chase them yourself.
Persistent Personalized Outreach
We explain your actual job and follow up with people who may consider a conversation.
Live Candidate Qualification
You see people we have spoken with about the work, interest, and practical fit, not an unread resume pile.
Candidate Intelligence and Process Support
You get a written brief and support through interviews and offer discussions. You make the hiring decision.
How long will it take to see a short list?
That depends on the job, schedule, available people, and what your employer can offer. We discuss those constraints before outreach and update you as candidates respond. We do not promise a fixed shortlist date. We check the job brief before arranging interviews. Tell us which parts of the role you can change.
What if a candidate receives a counteroffer?
We ask why the person wants to move and discuss competing decisions before an offer. A counteroffer can still change their choice. Keep the duties and offer clear rather than assuming more money settles every concern. Tell us early if parts of your offer cannot change, so the candidate hears it from us first.
What are the replacement terms?
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement. Ask us to walk through those terms before you sign, so you know how a replacement would work for your opening and who would start it.
What do we not do in a standard permanent search?
We do not bill standard contingency search by the hour or simply repost your job. Temporary coverage is a separate arrangement. Any retainer or different engagement must be agreed, not assumed. Tell us early if you need coverage while the permanent search runs.