Dr. V.H. Savitha
M.Sc. (Sp. & Hg.), Ph.D
Savitha is the Professor and In-Charge Head of the Department of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology at SRM Medical College Hospital and Research Centre, Chennai, and a consultant cleft specialist speech-language pathologist. An alumnus of the All India Institute of Speech and Hearing, Mysore (Masters, 2003), she received her Ph.D. from Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai, for her thesis, 'Early Language Development in Tamil Speaking Children with Cleft Lip and Palate – A Longitudinal Study'.
As a speech-language pathologist specializing in clefts, Savitha has a special interest in training and capacity building for cleft speech services. She is one of the master trainers for cleft speech in India and has been involved in reviewing and expanding speech services at Smile Train partners across the country. Savitha designed and executed a Smile Train Speech Training Initiative in Myanmar and coordinated the ‘Sri Ramachandra University – Smile Train Speech Training Initiative.’ She was conferred the prestigious ‘Braithwaite Oration’ by the Indian Society of Cleft Lip Palate and Related Craniofacial Anomalies in recognition of her contributions to cleft care in India and is a member of Smile Train Research and Innovation Advisory Council (STRIAC).
Savitha has long been involved in training speech pathologists and providing cleft speech services in India and Southeast Asia. She has deliberated numerous presentations in scientific forums at the regional, national, and international levels and authored 14 publications and three book chapters.