Dr. Sarah El-Wahsh is a certified practising speech pathologist in a tertiary hospital, lecturer at the University of Sydney, and researcher with a strong passion to improving care for people living with MND. As a speech pathologist, Sarah is passionate about supporting people living with MND to maintain their ability to communicate and enjoy safe, meaningful eating and drinking experiences for as long as possible. She recognises these as vital to quality of life, dignity, and connection. Sarah has a particular interest in advanced communication and counselling skills for healthcare professionals – especially in navigating sensitive, hopeful, and challenging conversations in healthcare.
Sarah completed her Bachelor of Applied Science (Speech Pathology) Honours degree in 2017, graduating with Honours I, the University Medal, and the Dean’s Scholar Award. Sarah was awarded a Research Training Program (RTP) scholarship and completed her PhD in 2022 from the University of Sydney. Sarah leads an international community of practice supporting speech pathologists in voice banking and has published widely on communication and swallowing impairments in progressive neurological diseases. Her contributions include several first-author journal articles and book chapters and have been recognised through multiple awards for research and clinical excellence at both national and international levels. As a passionate clinician-researcher, Sarah is looking forward to being a part of the Australian MND Guidelines advisory panel to promote work that is evidence-based, multidisciplinary, and most importantly, centred on the lived experiences of the people it serves.
