The Importance of an Efficient SLP Referral Process
Managing speech-language pathology (SLP) referrals in a K–12 school setting can often feel like navigating a maze—especially during peak paperwork seasons. But with a streamlined approach, school-based SLPs can turn what’s typically a time-consuming and often chaotic process into a well-oiled system that saves time and leads to better outcomes for students.
An efficient referral process isn’t just about reducing paperwork. It’s about making sure the right students get the right support at the right time. From teacher referrals and parent concerns to screenings and follow-ups, every step plays a role in building a clearer, faster path to services. When communication is proactive, documentation is organized, and everyone involved knows what to expect, referrals become a powerful tool rather than a bureaucratic burden.
In this guide, we’ll walk through a simplified, step-by-step approach to handling speech therapy referrals, offering real-world strategies, templates, and expert advice from Marisha Mets, founder of SLP Now. Whether you’re looking to fine-tune your current process or starting from scratch, these strategies will help you save time, improve collaboration, and ultimately support your students more effectively.
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Step 1: Understanding SLP Referrals
Before streamlining the referral process, it’s important to understand what a speech-language pathology (SLP) referral actually is—and why it matters. An SLP referral is typically the first step in identifying whether a student may benefit from speech or language support. It’s how concerns about communication challenges are formally brought to the attention of the school-based SLP.
Referrals can come from various sources—most commonly, teachers and parents. A teacher referral often happens when a student struggles with articulation, language comprehension, or social communication that impacts classroom performance. On the other hand, parent referrals may stem from observations at home or developmental concerns. In some cases, school administrators or other specialists may initiate a referral.
Each district may have its own guidelines, but generally, the referral triggers a structured process: gathering information, conducting observations or screenings, and deciding whether to move forward with a full evaluation.
Do You Need a Referral for Speech Therapy?
In school settings, yes—a formal referral is usually required to initiate services. This helps ensure that all interventions are documented, monitored, and aligned with district policies and state regulations. Outside of schools, private clinics may offer more flexibility, but even then, some insurance providers or healthcare systems require a referral from a physician.
Understanding this foundational step allows SLPs to set clear expectations with both staff and families, paving the way for a smoother, more effective process from the very beginning.
Step 2: Initiating the Referral
Once a concern has been identified, the next step is initiating the referral process—this is where things can either flow smoothly or become a source of delay. The goal is to make this step as straightforward and consistent as possible, not just for the SLP, but for teachers and parents too.
How to Get a Referral for Speech Therapy
The process typically starts with a teacher or parent filling out a referral form. In some districts, a verbal request may begin the process, but written documentation is usually required soon after. It’s critical that the referral form captures key information up front—what the concerns are, specific observations, and whether any classroom interventions have already been attempted.
Here’s a basic step-by-step guide to initiating a referral:
- Referral Request: A teacher, parent, or staff member notices a concern and requests a referral.
- Referral Form Completion: The referring party fills out a standardized form. This often includes checkboxes and open-ended prompts for clarity.
- Parent Permission: Before moving forward, written parent/guardian consent is typically needed, especially for screenings or evaluations.
- Additional Information Gathering: The SLP may reach out for more context—teacher notes, previous IEP data, or classroom samples.
- Scheduling a Screening: If allowed by district policy, a brief screening or classroom observation may be scheduled.
Examples of Effective Referral Wording
When documenting a referral, clarity and specificity are key. Instead of “struggles with speech,” try:
- “Student omits final consonants in multisyllabic words, impacting intelligibility.”
- “Student has difficulty following multi-step directions during group instruction.”
- “Student avoids speaking during classroom discussions due to articulation concerns.”
These kinds of detailed observations help the SLP understand the scope of the concern and determine appropriate next steps.
Tips for Communicating with Teachers and Parents
Clear communication at this stage can significantly reduce back-and-forth and confusion later. Consider offering:
- A quick-start guide for teachers outlining when and how to make a referral
- Handouts with common speech/language red flags
- Email templates for confirming receipt of a referral and outlining next steps
When everyone knows what to expect, the referral process becomes a collaborative effort—not just another form to fill out.
“having a teacher referral form that helps you gather all of the information right off the bat and making it clear to the people at your school, if you have a referral, we need to fill out this form, this is all the information I need, and then that saves you a bunch of time going back and forth…”.
– Marisha Mets, Founder @ SLP Now
Step 3: Documenting the Referral Process
Clear, consistent documentation is the backbone of an effective referral system. Without it, important details can fall through the cracks, leading to delays, miscommunication, or missed support for students. Creating a reliable documentation process not only keeps referrals moving but also helps SLPs stay organized and compliant.
Creating Efficient Documentation
Start by mapping out the steps of your district’s referral process. Document each phase—from when the initial request is received, to screenings, to the final decision. This step-by-step reference acts as your personal checklist, reducing the mental load and minimizing the risk of skipping critical tasks.
Here are a few forms to include in your documentation system:
- Teacher Input Form: Captures classroom concerns and observations.
- Parent Permission Form: Authorizes the SLP to begin screenings or observations.
- Screening Results Form: Records findings and recommendations from initial assessments.
- Referral Tracking Sheet: Helps monitor the status, dates, and outcomes of each referral.
Whether you prefer digital or paper systems, consistency is key. Tools like binders with sheet protectors, folder systems, or SLP Now’s digital checklist platform can streamline the process and make everything easily accessible.
Therapy Referral Form Template
Having a go-to template for referrals not only saves time but also ensures that nothing important gets missed. Ideally, your template should include:
- Student info (name, grade, teacher)
- Areas of concern
- Examples of observed difficulties
- Previous interventions or supports attempted
- Date and name of the referring individual
Make a habit of keeping extra copies on hand—whether printed or saved in a digital hub—so you’re always ready to respond to a new referral without delay.
Speech Referral Example
Let’s say a third-grade teacher is concerned about a student’s articulation. On the referral form, the teacher might write:
“Student substitutes ‘w’ for ‘r’ consistently, which affects intelligibility during oral presentations. Attempts classroom strategies but minimal improvement noted.”
A well-documented concern like this provides the SLP with actionable insight and helps determine whether further steps, like a screening, are necessary.
“You may want a quick form to keep track of your results, like if you do a screening or classroom observation or whatever you might do as part of the referral process. Just having a way to document your results.”
– Marisha Mets
Step 4: Organizing Resources
Having all your referral-related resources in one place can be a game-changer. It reduces time spent searching for forms, cuts down on repeated tasks, and helps ensure no part of the process slips through the cracks—especially during busy seasons when caseloads are high.
Efficient Resource Management
Whether you prefer digital systems or paper-based setups, the key is accessibility. Resources should be easy to grab when you need them and equally easy to restock or update. Marisha recommends using either:
- Binders with sheet protectors that hold multiple copies of each form
- File folders with clearly labeled tabs
- Digital systems with folders and shortcuts for quick access
If you’re using paper forms, consider this hack: highlight the original form using a yellow highlighter. The copier won’t pick up the mark, and it serves as a reminder to never give away your original.
Visual Aids and Tracking Tools
Visual tools can also help you stay on top of your referrals. Try using:
- Referral tracking spreadsheets to monitor dates, follow-up needs, and status
- Process flowcharts or checklists that outline each referral stage
- Digital checklists with built-in due dates and auto-reminders (SLP Now offers these)
The goal is to create a system where everything you need—forms, student info, tracking tools—is at your fingertips. This saves time, reduces stress, and makes it easier to focus on what matters most: supporting your students.
Step 5: Communicating with Teachers
No matter how organized your referral process is, it won’t work efficiently unless teachers are on board. Effective communication is essential—not just when a referral is made, but throughout the entire process. Helping teachers understand what makes a “good” referral can dramatically reduce unnecessary paperwork and ensure students truly in need get timely support.
Proactive Communication Strategies
Start by making the process crystal clear. Share referral guidelines with your staff early in the school year and revisit them periodically. Consider creating a one-page handout or referral guide for teachers that outlines:
- What types of concerns warrant a referral
- Examples of classroom interventions to try first
- How to complete the referral form accurately
Offering a brief in-service or mini-presentation during a staff meeting can go a long way. Walk through the referral process, highlight common pitfalls, and explain what information you need to make an informed decision.
Quick Tips for Teacher Discussions
- Use plain language: Avoid jargon when explaining the process.
- Offer examples: Use real-life scenarios to illustrate what a strong referral looks like.
- Be available: Let teachers know when and how to reach out if they’re unsure whether a referral is appropriate.
- Provide ready-to-use resources: Strategies, observation checklists, or communication visuals can be helpful classroom tools.
By educating teachers and opening lines of communication, you not only streamline your workflow—you also foster a team-based approach to supporting student success.
“So just having a handout for teachers on like what would make a good referral and things to consider. And also having some handouts with strategies that they can implement and you can trickle those throughout the year.”.
– Marisha Mets, Founder @ SLP Now
Best Practices for Streamlining Referrals
Even with solid systems in place, the referral process can still become overwhelming—especially during high-volume times of the year. That’s where best practices come in. These small tweaks and strategic habits can make a big difference in managing your workload efficiently and preventing burnout.
Expert Tips from Marisha Mets
Marisha Mets, founder of SLP Now, has worked with thousands of school-based SLPs and managed caseloads in the triple digits. Her number one recommendation? Document everything—not just for compliance, but for clarity and consistency. She emphasizes the importance of writing out each step of your referral process so you don’t have to rely on memory, especially during busy seasons.
Other top tips include:
- Batch tasks: Group similar tasks together—like reviewing all new referrals once a week—to save mental energy.
- Use digital tools: Platforms like SLP Now offer automated checklists, built-in due dates, and pre-made forms to simplify the process.
- Reflect and refine: Regularly review your referral process and identify where you’re getting stuck. Then adjust your system accordingly.
Common Challenges—and How to Solve Them
- Incomplete referral forms
✅ Solution: Provide clear instructions and examples for teachers. - Missed follow-ups
✅ Solution: Use a tracking sheet with due dates and set regular check-ins. - Overwhelming volume
✅ Solution: Educate teachers about pre-referral interventions and what constitutes a strong referral.
By implementing these best practices and troubleshooting pain points before they become bigger issues, SLPs can reclaim valuable time and create a referral system that actually works.
“The biggest thing that you can do to save your time is just to document that whole process… Over time, you’ll be able to reflect and identify where you’re getting held up, what’s taking the most time, and then just streamline that whole process.”.
– Marisha Mets, Founder @ SLP Now
Additional Resources
Once your core referral process is up and running, you may want to explore advanced strategies and tools to take your system to the next level. These resources can help experienced SLPs fine-tune their workflow, better support their teams, and stay ahead of the paperwork curve.
Advanced Strategies for Experienced SLPs
If you’ve already built a streamlined system, consider:
- Customizing your digital tools: Platforms like SLP Now allow you to adapt checklists and forms to fit your exact needs.
- Developing mini training sessions for staff: Build quick modules or videos that explain the referral process.
- Creating a referral data dashboard: Track patterns in referrals to spot trends and identify areas for targeted teacher support or school-wide interventions.
- Building a resource hub: Store intervention strategies, handouts, and templates in a shared folder for easy access by your team or school staff.
Helpful Links and Tools
- SLP Now Blog: Referrals – Tips and tools to improve your referral process
- SLP Goal Bank – Pre-written goals aligned to referral outcomes
- Referral Templates and Checklists – Forms to simplify documentation
- Digital Workload Management Tools – Try a free trial of SLP Now’s tools to automate your referral process
Whether you’re just getting started or refining a mature system, these resources will help you continue streamlining your workflow and serving your students with clarity and confidence.
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Transcript
Marisha (00:01.538)
I am so ready to kick off this series where we dive into all things referrals, IEPs and evaluations. And today we are starting off with referrals. And this is, so we're heading into one of the busiest paperwork seasons, typically for school-based SLPs. And I know a lot of us get overwhelmed by
all of these components. So I'm really excited to share some of the strategies that have worked for me in managing a caseload in the triple digits and then also working with thousands of SLPs on helping them streamline and save a bunch of time with these types of tasks. So referrals is what's first step. And the first tip that I have for you around referrals,
is to document the steps so that you can kind of inventory the process and by knowing exactly what the steps are, that'll save you a ton of time because you won't be forgetting to do certain steps, which I've definitely done. So you won't be forgetting steps. You'll have like clear process. won't have to think about all the things that you need to do. You'll just have them written out and you can just run through the list.
and get them done much more efficiently. So here's just a brain dump of what some of the steps might include, but I would highly recommend checking out your district's process and checking in with other SLPs or your administrator. A lot of times they'll have a process already written out.
but just make sure that you have that and that you have easy access to it, but some steps are Like a referral is kicked off when a parent or a teacher requests that And so that will look different depending on where you are But maybe it's typically like a verbal type of thing if you don't have the form set up But either you'll get a verbal
Marisha (02:24.654)
request for a referral and you'll have to follow up or the teacher will submit a form and that'll kick off the referral. Then we may need to request additional information. We may schedule screening depending on your state if that's something that's allowed. And then you may be sharing the results with the team and or making recommendations and deciding what the next steps are.
and then we may decide like, no, this doesn't make sense for a referral. referral is cleared or maybe we need to decide to follow up or maybe we're moving them, in a different route. So those are some of the big steps when it comes to referral. And I was purposefully trying to keep it broad because obviously this varies, but hopefully this helps you. Like if you were able to.
of jot down some of your steps as you are listening. That would be super awesome. But yeah, like I said at the beginning, this is a great, like writing out the steps is a great thing to do with your team at the district level or like with other SLPs or with people in your building just so you're on the same page in terms of the process. And then you can share resources to help
streamline and make that even easier. some things that we can do to make that process easier are one, just knowing what the steps are, but then also making sure that we have all of the resources that we need so we're not reinventing the wheel every time. So having a teacher referral form that helps you gather all of the information right off the bat and making it clear to the
people at your school, if you have a referral, we need to fill out this form, this is all the information I need, and then that saves you a bunch of time going back and forth and being like, wait, I needed this and I needed this and can you tell me this? So instead, you'll capture it all on one form. You may need to gather parent permission as well, so you'll want to have a form or process for that.
Marisha (04:50.902)
You may want a quick form to keep track of your results, like if you do a screening or classroom observation or whatever you might do as part of the referral process. Just having a way to document your results. And then one thing that I really like, so you might have a handful of forms and resources. So if you're using hard copies,
I highly recommend just having a binder or like a series of folders and just make sure you have multiple copies so you can just grab and go. You don't have to go to your computer, remember where the file is, hit print, run to the printer, then go. That's a lot of extra steps. So just make sure you have copies of any hard copies that you're any papers that you're using as part of the process. And then one quick tip.
I like to, because it's easier for me to make a copy of something than to try and connect my computer to the printer and do all of those steps. So I tend to use the copy machine for additional copies. And so I like to highlight my original. And if you use a yellow highlighter, the copier doesn't pick up on the highlighting.
So I know that I can never, ever, ever give away a copy of a sheet that has highlighter on it because that's my original. So anytime I run out of copies, that highlighter is a reminder for me. And then I run to the copy machine, make a handful of copies and like replenish that. So I've had file folders with these extra copies or binders with sheet protectors with extra copies in them.
because the sheet protectors fit like a handful of sheets. So those are some ways to keep those things organized so that you have easy access to everything that you need. And then you might want to have a sheet where you can keep track of all of the referrals and like their status and their dates. And you can have this just be written. So
Marisha (07:13.664)
You just have the student's name, the date they were referred, and then the date that you want to follow up, and maybe their status or whatever. So you can have just a printed table that you use. I really like to do this digitally. And I'm super duper excited because we have a feature in SLP Now where it has pre-made checklists. So we've done like
The step one that I shared of documenting the steps, we have a checklist of the common steps that you'll need to complete a successful referral. And then we have all, like we have digital versions of all of the forms that you can send off and it helps you keep track of what you've completed. You like check off the steps, the resources are attached, whether you're using like
teacher forum or collecting information from the parents or whatever it might be. You just click to send it off and the system takes care of it. You check off the steps that you have to do manually and then you can enter in like due dates and statuses so that you can quickly sort your list of students. So it helps organize all of those pieces for you, which I think is super cool. It's saving SLPs a lot of time.
and then yeah, I, one of the things that is also super helpful is having handouts. and so kind of at the very beginning of the process, what makes an effective referral. so if you are getting a ton of referrals and you're not feeling like they're the best referrals, some, did,
episode with Lacey, a handful of episodes back where we talked about communicating with teachers and that's one of the things that we discussed. But if you didn't listen to that episode, one strategy would be to like share handouts with teachers or to do a quick in-service where you talk about what makes a good referral and give teachers some strategies that they can implement because
Marisha (09:36.622)
They really should be implementing some interventions before making a referral. And so, yeah, that's one tip. And then just having, so having a handout for teachers on like what would make a good referral and things to consider. And also having some handouts with strategies that they can implement and you can trickle those throughout the year. And then on the tail end of the referral,
or kind of in the beginning, like resources for parents as well on things that they can try and just some education on the process and all of that. so having those resources helps streamline a lot of the communication as well. And then, yeah, so I think that those are all the tips. So just a quick recap is the biggest thing that you can do to save your time.
is just to document that whole process. as you're doing that, you can look at it. You don't have to streamline everything right off the bat. But if you're seeing those steps on paper, and then you can be like, well, I always forget to do that. So what can I do to help myself? Or, my gosh, I'm getting so many referrals that don't make sense. And so you can look at that and kind of address the very beginning stages.
And over time, you'll able to reflect and identify where you're getting held up, what's taking the most time, and then just streamline that whole process. And so those are my recommendations for navigating referrals. And then, just some keeping track of the copies or managing paperwork digitally.
having a list so that you can easily keep track of who you need to follow up with, whether that's on paper or digitally. Like there's tons of options on, there's 5 million ways that you could organize this and actually implement it. But I think those are the biggest principles. yeah, and if you're wanting to check out the SLP Now workload tools to help streamline your referrals and all the other pieces of paperwork, head to slpnow.
Marisha (12:01.774)
and you'll be able to sign up for a free trial and check out all of those tools and use them as much as you want for two whole weeks. So that is a wrap and we'll see you next week when we talk about assessments and evaluations.
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