rachel leonard

Lecturer
Tel: 353-91-495204
Email: rachel.leonardnuigalway.ie

Background and Qualifications

Rachel graduated from Queen Margaret College, Edinburgh in 1998 with a BSc in Speech Pathology and Therapy. She worked with the South Eastern and Western Health Boards in Ireland prior to travelling to Australia. Initially she worked as a Speech Pathologist in the Northern Territory. Subsequently she undertook employment with the Commonwealth Rehabilitation Service (CRS Australia which focused on returning individuals with injury or disability to the workforce. It was as a result of this position that Rachel developed an interest in Traumatic Brain Impairment (TBI) and went on to pursue a Masters degree in TBI in 2004 at The University of Sydney. Her studies focussed on the role of spontaneous versus pharmacologically induced neuroplastic recovery.

During her time with CRS Australia Rachel participated in national teams within the organisation.  One such team was the Network of Excellence for Traumatic Brain Impairment. This involved reviewing international research in order that evidence based practice could be delivered within the organisation. The team were also responsible for reviewing and developing information packs for clients and employers. They worked closely with the learning and development department to review and update training packages for staff. Rachel was also a member of the research and evaluation committee. As such she liaised closely with universities who were conducting research in which clients of CRS Australia were requested to participate. She was a national trainer in employment strategies for the organisation and frequently travelled throughout Australia to provide training to other staff members in relation to their clients.

Rachel returned to Ireland in 2006 where she worked with the HSE West until January 2011 in order to establish a Speech and Language Therapy service in adult acute care. As part of this position she completed a post graduate diploma in Dysphagia at Trinity College Dublin in 2009. She is currently reading for a Masters degree in Healthcare Ethics and Law at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

Rachel is a peer reviewer for journal article submissions pertaining to TBI in the International Journal of Speech and Language Pathology.

Teaching Responsibilities

Rachel’s teaching responsibilities in the undergraduate BSc programme include acquired communication disorders and disorders of feeding, eating, drinking and swallowing, and the Aphasia Outreach Programme.  Rachel also contributes to other modules such as Communication and Cognitive Impairment, Neurology, Neuroanatomy and Cognitive Neuropsychology.

Membership of Professional Associations

• Member of the Irish Association of Speech and Language Therapists (IASLT)
• Member of the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT)
• Member of the Australian Society for the Study of Brain Impairment (ASSBI)
• Member of the Dysphagia Special Interest Group

Poster Presentations

Leavy, D., Leonard, R. & McMenamin, R. (2011). The relationship between amateur singers' knowledge of voice care and perceptions of vocal health, at the Irish Association of Speech & Language Therapy Biennial Conference, Dublin, November 2011. 

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