Foley Speech Pathology Practice Fills Local Healthcare Need

Experienced speech-language pathologist provides resources and education for the healthcare and local communities. 

Foley’s Empowered Speech Pathology was born out of a passion project for Speech-Language Pathologist Kelly Cantrell. After a wide variety of career experiences and living in locations across the U.S., Cantrell saw a need in the Baldwin County area that her expertise could help meet. Since opening her clinic in mid-2025, she has seen patients make progress in ways they never expected while also working to educate the community at large about speech pathology resources.

“My goal is to educate people,” Cantrell said, adding: “After 36 years in this field, I want to share the knowledge I’ve gained and the innovative approaches being used across the country. If we can broaden speech pathology awareness among local physicians, patients and families, we can help ensure people receive the best care possible.”

When Cantrell moved to Foley in 2022, she encountered many people in the area who did not know the job of a speech pathologist. She was working from home at the time, but her passion for education and what the field could provide led her to open the clinic, as well as provide an educational element outside its walls in the form of webinars, speaking engagements, newsletters, articles and more. She regularly provides monthly flyers about speech pathology and her treatment expertise to medical providers. For patients needing this type of care, there is an overall shortage of providers, and the local area is no different, according to Cantrell.

“Faith is important to me, and I felt led to open a practice,” she said. “This is what I’m supposed to be doing.”

Empowered Speech Pathology sees patients 16 and over who are facing a variety of issues from speech disorders, language disorders, swallowing disorders, neurological disorders, mental health conditions, cognitive-communication disorders, alternative augmentative communication, voice disorders and more. A detailed evaluation leads to a tailored treatment plan that includes instructions for the individual, as well as their families or caregivers. She currently works with clients from Mobile and Baldwin counties and Pensacola.

Cantrell has owned a business before but said this is her first private practice. She said the business side of the practice so far is very straightforward, and it has been rewarding to get to know the community and interact with “patients who are in great need of specialized care.” She added:

“The joy and personal satisfaction I still get from treating full time after 36 years has been a surprise to me. It has amazed me the joy that I get every single day. I can’t wait to see how my patients have progressed and what they can do from visit to visit.”

A Passion for Education

Beyond her clinic work and creating her own educational content, Cantrell works closely with the Parkinson Association of Alabama in Foley and the Lou Gehrig’s disease (ALS) Association of Alabama in Daphne. Both organizations offer support group meetings that she attends — as a resource and, sometimes, a speaker and educator — along with various others from the medical community including professionals, physicians, nurse practitioners and more. She said working with both organizations has been “life changing and ridiculously rewarding.” Cantrell said her father-in-law had Parkinson’s Disease (PD), so “I know it from a personal perspective and the clinical perspective.”

When asked what she would want the community to know about speech pathology, she said she wished more people were aware of the resources in the community and how to access them and that this goes beyond even the disorders she sees. She said people will experience an illness, a procedure or a new symptom (such as a hoarse voice or memory issues) and think, “I have to live with this.” She said this isn’t always the case, adding often issues can be addressed and don’t have to be a part of aging. “You should never just live with something,” Cantrell said. “You should search out a professional.”

Technology

Cantrell has embraced the use of technology and AI in her practice, using the tool most specifically to do research and access statistics. She uses it to ask about expected outcomes and modalities, and she said the results get better and better with every search since it now “knows” her. She also uses this for clinical materials and said sometimes it gives her ideas on a technique she hasn’t used in a while.

Year Two

Heading into her second year of practice, Cantrell is looking at the possibility — and logistics — of expanding her clinic with another provider. But for now, Cantrell said she is continuing to grow, support, step in when there’s a need and let people know resources are available to them. She wants to facilitate the best healthcare she can give and is continuing to develop the relationships she needs to do just that. “It’s just so important to me that I use the gift that God gave me,” she said. “This is what I’m supposed to be doing right now.”

About Kelly Cantrell

With more than 35 years as a speech pathologist, Cantrell has an undergraduate degree in psychology from Oregon State University and a master’s degree in speech pathology from Western Oregon University. She has practiced at a number of hospitals across the western and southwestern U.S. She has a specialty in head injuries and trach/ventilator care and spent seven years working in alternative and augmentative communication, which often employs a communication device for people who can no longer speak or have voice issues. She developed the head and neck cancer program for the Legacy Healthcare System and worked in the Sacred Heart medical system. She also worked in home health for a number of years. Cantrell is SPEAK OUT!® certified, and the program provides free services and ongoing weekly training sessions to PD patients through her involvement.