A Glimpse Into the Eyes of a Coach

Personal tragedy leads to mentoring

The day Angie Quesnell’s grandfather had a stroke was a life-changing experience for Angie and her entire family. But it was also the beginning of her new passion. As a high school student, Angie didn’t know what she wanted to be when she grew up. Her grandfather started taking speech therapy following his stroke, and his speech therapy sessions introduced Angie to the world of speech-language pathology (SLP).
“It gave me direction in my career path,” Angie said, thinking back to the experience.
Angie followed her passion to becoming an SLP in a skilled nursing facility with Infinity Rehab. As part of this role, she helped train and educate nurses during their internships. Seeing them move on to make an impact in their clinical practice felt rewarding to Angie. It was then that she realized she loved mentoring.
Today Angie combines her love for SLP and mentoring as a Regional Speech-Language Pathologist Mentor with Infinity Rehab. She provides support, guidance, and resources to clinicians entering the field through a program called Clinical Fellowship. Clinicians complete their Clinical Fellowship for nine months after earning a master’s degree. Angie also offers support to SLPs who transition from a school district, move from out-of-state, or who aren’t familiar with a skilled nursing setting.

Mentoring makes an impact

Angie loves making a positive impact on her clinical fellows’ careers.
“It goes beyond their Clinical Fellowship – they impact their patients’ lives, and they go on to spread their knowledge to other clinicians,” she noted.
It is a system of “passing the torch,” as Angie calls it. But this isn’t one-sided. She learns just as much from them as they learn from her.
“Mentoring can be a great dynamic if you know how to guide and teach and what the relationship should look like,” Angie said.

Giving support and getting support back

Mentoring is more complex than people think. It takes organization and training to effectively teach and provide someone with the skills and knowledge they need in their career. But Angie doesn’t have to do it alone.
As part of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), she receives support and feedback on what the mentorship program should look like. Additionally, she also plays a vital role in giving knowledge back to the association. In November 2018, Angie and two of her colleagues, Carolyn Staples and Michelle Jabczynski, presented tele-supervision technology during the annual ASHA Convention.
Tele-supervision provides a means for mentors to attend their clinical fellows’ assessment and treatment sessions with patients and provide feedback as if they were there in the room.
Because Angie is a licensed SLP in Idaho and Washington, she has clinical fellows in both those states. Being able to mentor through tele-supervision allows Angie to check in with her students regularly, a benefit for both her and her clinical fellows. Angie is proud to be part of something that not only helps her and her clinical fellows, but clinicians around the country.

“It fills my heart to know I can provide ways for mentors to engage with clinical fellows,” she joyfully stated.

In addition to presenting tele-supervision, Angie also attended this year’s conference, bringing back a wealth of knowledge to implement and share. She also got to experience Boston and reconnected with some of her past clinical fellows.

The rewards of mentoring

One of the most rewarding parts of Angie’s career is seeing her clinical fellows’ successes.
“Infinity has so many great SLPs,” Angie said. “I enjoy seeing them provide support within their programs.”
Some of Angie’s clinical fellows are now mentors themselves. No matter if they continue down the SLP path or begin mentoring, Angie says it’s rewarding when they continue their career with Infinity Rehab.
“I love working for a company that recognizes the importance of mentorship,” Angie said. “I feel blessed to be a part of fostering success in our employees.”
Follow Infinity Rehab to find out more about our mentorship program.

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