The telehealth surge: Speech-language pathology mode of service delivery and consumer characteristics during COVID-19.

Purpose: To examine the characteristics of speech-language pathology (SLP) consumers prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic, with respect to the mode of service delivery within a local health district in New South Wales, Australia, to inform future health service planning.

Method: Observational study examining SLP occasions of service data pre-COVID-19 (2019-2019;  = 6413) and during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2021;  = 6908). Spatial mapping and multilevel models were used to examine associations between sociodemographic characteristics, telehealth utilisation, and videoconferencing.