Exploring the Science Behind Communication, Cognition, and Human Function
Welcome to the EJT Communication Consultant LLC Insights Hub — a resource exploring the intersection of neuroscience, communication, healthcare, and law.
Through expert conversations, articles, and case analyses, Erica Thomas, M.S., CCC-SLP, provides evidence-informed perspectives on topics including forensic speech-language pathology, traumatic brain injury, cognitive communication disorders, medical-legal consulting, and healthcare communication risk.
Because understanding a person’s abilities requires looking beyond the diagnosis, the documentation, and the scan.
Beyond the Scan™
Understanding the Human Function Behind the Medical Record
Medical records and imaging provide valuable information — but they do not always explain how a person communicates, thinks, processes information, or functions in everyday life.
Beyond the Scan™ is an ongoing series of case analyses and expert commentary from Erica Thomas, M.S., CCC-SLP, examining the questions that emerge when the full human picture extends beyond traditional medical findings:
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Traumatic brain injury and the deficits imaging doesn't show
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Cognitive-communication disorders and everyday function
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Communication, capacity, and legal decision-making
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Aspiration, dysphagia, and preventable harm in healthcare settings
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What the medical record isn't telling you — and where to look
New analyses are published regularly on LinkedIn and here on the site.
Latest Articles
Forensic SLP & Medical-Legal Insights
Research, analysis, and professional perspectives on the role of communication science in legal and healthcare settings.
Featured topics:
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Forensic SLP Analysis of Hidden Cognitive-Linguistic Deficits in TBI and Healthcare Risk Management
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How Language Disorders Affect Miranda Rights Understanding
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When the MRI Is Normal but the Person Is Not: Understanding Invisible Brain Injury After TBI
Read more here
Case Analyses
Examining Complex Communication and Functional Questions
Case analyses provide educational examples of how communication, cognition, and neurological function may intersect with medical and legal questions.
Topics include:
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Traumatic brain injury and functional limitations
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Aphasia and communication reliability
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Cognitive impairment and capacity
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Dysphagia and healthcare risk
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Documentation gaps and clinical decision-making
Case analyses are educational examples and do not represent confidential client information or individual case outcomes.
Explore Case Analyses
1. Is Honey a thick diet... functional?
2. Dysphagia "non-compliance"
About Erica Thomas, M.S., CCC-SLP
Erica Thomas is a forensic speech-language pathologist and founder of EJT Communication Consultant LLC. Her work focuses on communication, cognition, neurological injury, and the intersection of healthcare and legal systems.
Through forensic consultation, healthcare consulting, and educational content, she helps professionals better understand the factors that exist beyond the diagnosis — where science meets human function.
Beyond Speech Problems: Distinguishing Aphasia, Dysarthria, and Cognitive-Communication Impairment
Journal of Nurse Life Care Planning, Summer 2026 — Lead Article
"Speech problems" is not a diagnosis, and treating it as one produces life care plans and damages models that don't survive scrutiny. Aphasia, dysarthria, and cognitive-communication impairment look similar in a chart note but carry entirely different prognoses, service needs, and cost trajectories — and the wrong label can move a plan's projected cost by years of unnecessary or omitted care. This article sets out the differential distinctions for life care planners and the professionals who rely on their reports, including frequency and duration of speech-language pathology services by phase of care, standards for supervised speech-generating device trials, and the procedure coding that supports each recommendation.
[Read the full article at AANLCP →]