Progress Speech & Language

I am the aunt of a child who received services at Progress Speech and Language. I am writing as a witness to share how the front desk experience with receptionist Teresa, has been consistently unprofessional and inappropriate. On multiple occasions, Teresa ignored us at check-in and check-out because she was talking on her personal phone or sometimes because she is chatting with others. She always makes us wait without acknowledgment, and when we did approach the desk, she was visibly irritated and made rude facial expressions. Worse, Teresa is always speaking loudly about other clients and their children, mocking and making disrespectful comments where everyone could hear. She was even talking incredibly loud about her own personal matters, including how she’s having a baby, getting tax money, and was being mad because her baby’s father gives money to his other child’s mother — all conversations we can hear in the waiting room. The last incident was especially upsetting: she openly gossiped about my niece, and her parents by name to another staff member while we were sitting right there. This made us feel disrespected and humiliated in a place where families should feel supported and safe. I want to make it clear that this type of unprofessional conduct will cost you clients and money. Families will refuse to come to a place where they feel mocked, disrespected, and gossiped about. As Kaiser members, we have already filed formal complaints about this establishment, and we sincerely hope you take immediate action before more families choose to leave for good.

I am writing to formally share several ongoing concerns regarding the front desk experience at Progress Speech and Language. While our daughter has formed a strong relationship with her therapist and has made noticeable progress, the unprofessional conduct at the front desk—particularly involving your receptionist, Teresa has created an increasingly uncomfortable and upsetting environment for our family. From our very first visit, the initial impression was disappointing. The waiting room was noticeably dirty, and there was no formal greeting upon arrival. Instead, the receptionist was on a personal phone call. This has become a recurring experience—more often than not, Teresa is either on the phone or otherwise occupied with personal conversations when clients arrive. We are left either standing at the front desk waiting to be acknowledged or waiting for her to call us over for copayment processing. What is far more concerning, however, is the repeated lack of professionalism, discretion, and respect we have observed. On multiple occasions while waiting for my daughter to finish her sessions, I have overheard Teresa speaking openly about other clients and their families. These conversations are not only inappropriate they have included judgmental and mocking remarks about children currently receiving treatment. She has made fun of certain patients and referred to parents in a disrespectful tone, all within earshot of others in the waiting area. This behavior is absolutely unacceptable in any professional setting, especially one centered around children and families seeking support. A recent incident involved my husband waiting at the front desk to pay the copay. He stood for several minutes without being acknowledged. After nearly four minutes, Teresa looked up and said, “You can have a seat.” He responded that he was simply trying to pay, and I added that it would be courteous to acknowledge someone rather than ignore them. She then processed the payment but did so while making exaggerated facial expressions, clearly indicating irritation. Immediately after, she warmly greeted and engaged in small talk with other clients highlighting the inconsistent and selective nature of her interactions with us. We raised this concern with our daughter’s therapist, hoping it would be addressed. Unfortunately, things have only worsened. At a subsequent visit, I chose to sit and wait to be called for payment rather than approach the desk, trying to avoid another confrontation. Teresa never called us up. When the therapist came to get our daughter, I mentioned we hadn’t yet paid, and she said she would inform her supervisor. Teresa then contacted the therapist to say she was “busy” and that I “shouldn’t be mad” she hadn’t called—then laughed. Still, she never addressed us directly or requested payment. Shortly after, another staff member entered, and Teresa called her over and said, “Oh, I have to tell you about the drama.” She then proceeded to discuss me, my husband, and our daughter by name, openly and mockingly, while we were sitting right there in the waiting room. It was incredibly inappropriate and hurtful, especially as it was said loud enough for others to hear. These interactions have left us feeling disrespected, judged, and unwelcome. We are no longer comfortable entering the building, as we feel like we are walking on eggshells and being talked about by staff who are supposed to provide a safe, supportive environment for families. Despite our daughter’s positive relationship with her therapist, the repeated incidents with Teresa have made it impossible for us to continue services at your facility. We strongly believe that all families deserve to be treated with dignity, confidentiality, and professionalism especially in a clinical setting that serves children with developmental and communication needs. We are sharing this in the hope that the clinic takes appropriate action to ensure a respectful, inclusive, and professional environment for all clients moving forward.

Unethical and uneducated practice. My child woke up with high fever and I called them as soon as they are open to let them know we won’t be coming in. They said I will be charged for “no show” since I didn’t give enough notice. My courtesy call costed me a no show fee. They said I need a doctor’s note if I don’t want to be charged. This is an uneducated and unprofessional policy since most viral infections resolve within 5-7 days without any treatment and by going to a doctor’s office while having fever, you are likely to spread the illness to those who are vulnerable. This place is taking advantage of illness of children. I think it is especially unethical and cruel since most population that get care from here are through regional center service and medi-cal.

I am so happy we found this clinic!! When my son was 2.5years old he had probably only 2-3 words when we started this journey. However, Miss Gayle and Mr Jaison (speech pathologist) were the best team that son had during this journey, he went from 2-3 words to almost 350+ words!!! (Now he talks all day) Thank you so much for your hard work and dedication Miss Gael and Mr Jason I will always be grateful to have you in our lives.

I love bringing my son to Progress Speech & Language. Ms. Julie has helped my son make so much progress with his speech in the last 8 months. I'm very grateful for this center.

Once we found Kathleen Thatcher here, we had the best experience with Speech for my daughter! Miss Katie allowed my daughter to grow at her own pace and really met her where she was. My daughter was a little over 2 when we started with Miss Katie and she quickly turned to love speech. Step by step, with Miss Katie’s weekly guidance, we saw my daughters speech develop. We have now graduated from speech (my daughter still asks for Miss Katie) but we continue to be grateful for the guidance, love and support Miss Katie gave my daughter and our family!

My son attended Progress Speech and Language for several months for speech therapy. The front office staff were welcoming and always helped us with scheduling. His therapist, Kathleen Thatcher, was very integral in his success. She built rapport quickly and got to know my son and our family very well. She was detail oriented, diligent, knowledgeable of services, current therapy trends, and truly enjoys what she does. It was great to watch them work together and see my son progress. We appreciated her tireless effort and creativity. After years of attending other speech therapy clinics, we are fortunate to have our son graduate with the help of Progress.

Kathleen Thatcher is an outstanding speech therapist. I cannot say enough good things about her. She has been working with my almost 3 year son since January 2022. He has made amazing progress during that time thanks to Kathleen’s care, hard work, and creativity. She’s thoughtful, educated, and resourceful. She always goes above and beyond to help my son. I know that she is one of his greatest supporters and is always celebrating his progress along with my husband and I. It is not often that you find someone with such a big heart that also has remarkable professional expertise and an extraordinary work ethic.