Southeast Missouri State Universitys Center for Speech and Hearing is offering a speech intervention program tailored to individuals with a diagnosis of Parkinsons disease.The Centers state-licensed and nationally certified speech-language pathologists and Southeast graduate students have received training in the SPEAKOUT! Live with Intent program to provide this intervention at no cost, including the therapy program and a workbook of speech exercises.Participation in the program consists of two to three individual one-hour appointments per week for three to four weeks, and the Centers flexible scheduling service can work with the needs of each individual. A doctors order is not required.Once an individual has completed SPEAKOUT!, they are invited to participate in free follow-up sessions of The LOUD Crowd, a social group promoting maintenance of therapy gains and community support. This service also provides all print materials.These services are provided thanks to a grant the Center for Speech and Hearing received from the Parkinsons Voice Project in Dallas, Texas. The grant funds staff training and resources for the SPEAKOUT! program.The Parkinsons Voice Project reports that up to 90 percent of people with Parkinsons disease are likely to develop speech disorders. In addition, aspiration pneumonia, caused by swallowing difficulty, accounts for 70 percent of the deaths among persons with Parkinsons disease. The Parkinson Voice Project is the only nonprofit organization in the world solely dedicated to addressing these serious issues through training and certification of speech-language pathologists to provide SPEAKOUT! and The LOUD Crowd.To schedule an appointment or for more information, contact Amy Herren, clinic coordinator at Southeasts Center for Speech and Hearing, at (573) 651-2050.